The original surf and turf: how to make Cava’s macho paella

Chef Chris McDonald’s secret? Killer sofrito. Here’s the recipe

(Image: Edward Pond; illustration by Jack Dylan)

“Paella is the Spanish equivalent of North American barbecue: it’s cooked by men, over a fire, outdoors. I love that atavistic approach to food. The important thing to remember is that making paella is a commitment. You’re dumping everything into the pan and leaving it to cook. When it’s in, there’s no turning back. Thankfully, slightly scorched rice on the bottom just adds to the charm.”

Ingredients

Sofrito
¼ cup olive oil
1 large white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 sweet red pepper, seeded and chopped
4 canned plum tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 tbsp sweet smoked Spanish paprika
3 bay leaves
½ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Paella
1 lb cleaned octopus
3 cups simmering low-sodium chicken stock
4 small bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, hacked in half crosswise with a cleaver (you can ask the butcher to do this for you)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
⅓ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup sofrito
1⅓ cups Bomba rice (I get mine from Pasquale Brothers)
¼ tsp crumbled saffron
2 6-inch Spanish cured chorizo sausages, halved lengthwise and sliced
16 to 24 small Manila clams, scrubbed
½ cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Directions

1. For sofrito, heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Cook onion and garlic for 10 minutes until soft but not browned. Add red pepper. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes until soft.
2. Add remaining sofrito ingredients. Reduce heat and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced. Discard bay leaves. Pulse sofrito in food processor until smooth. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze (it’s great on pasta).
3. For paella, steam octopus until tender (about an hour). When cool enough to handle, rub off skin. Cut tentacles and body into bite-sized chunks and discard head.
4. In a 15-inch paella pan or cast-iron skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper and cook for about 8 minutes, turning once, until browned. Drain on paper towels.
5. Pour off fat from pan. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add remaining oil and cook garlic for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add sofrito, stirring, for 1 minute.

Cava
1560 Yonge St., 416-979-9918

6. Stir in rice. Cook for 2 minutes until translucent. Stir in hot stock and saffron. Increase heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Add chicken, octopus and chorizo. Push clams, hinge-side down, into rice. Position pan so it straddles two burners and adjust heat so paella simmers gently. Cover pan tightly with foil. Cook for 10 minutes, rotating pan 90 degrees after 5 minutes. Remove foil. Turn chicken over. Cook, uncovered, for another 15 minutes, rotating pan every 5 minutes, until rice is almost tender, chicken is no longer pink inside and clams are open (discard any unopened ones).
7. Remove pan from heat. Sprinkle with parsley. Cover with a double layer of kitchen towel and let stand for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Makes 4 to 6 servings

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