Rice of the Fiestas do Boi in Allariz

Dear compañeiros / as, has come  to Festa do Boi  and like every year, again one of those rice dishes that are not forgotten, simply spectacular.

In previous years we have had exceptional tasters, for example the Lonely   Planet program team , who were in Ourense lands recording a special about the Boi festival (I link you to an article about Lonely Planet and National Geographic’s interest in the Boi) .

By the way, some of them repeated the dish more than once, although they said that the Spanish paella was “very nice”, we never tired of telling them that it was more Boi-style rice and the phrase ” the secret of the galician rice is the beer ”stayed with them forever…

Since last year we have become a little gentlemen and we already have a place in conditions of the great Paco & Ana that have been conditioned so that we can spend each year a little better, 2012 has been the year of the minikubatas, a less alcoholic idea of what it seems if you know the Fiesta do Boi, a round of tapas by Rubén Amorín from Ni mata ni fattening (the architect of the video edition that you can see in the recipe, thanks Ru) to have the aperitif and some vines from Monterrei del friend Ricardo, they have made a round meal.

This Boi rice is a tradition of our friend Serafín, merit of many and a little touch of mine, that year after year we take care of it. But little by little everyone is getting involved and we already have volunteers for all the steps, Aurora, María, Eli, Mónica, Ana, Nuria, Nacho (who this year even peeled an onion) and San, they bite everything with the art of a surgeon ; Manuel, Bruno, Ricardito and Jota remove the ingredients with millimeter precision and the most important of all:  the tasting , in which everyone participates. This year Ana has prepared us a pasta salad and the famous chocolate chip cake that were, of course, not yummy. All luxury as my father would say, but the most important thing is to enjoy it among friends, that the rice or whatever is used to get together year after year and above all have a good time in a wonderful villa, Allariz .

Preparation of the rice:

For this dish we need a professional paella, the size of which you see in the photo is for 40 people.

1. Peel the garlic cloves and chop as best as possible. We reserve. We chop the onions, carrots and peppers (green and red) very very fine so that they melt in the cooking. It is important that its texture is not noticed but the flavor it gives to rice is.
2. Chop the squid rings and the tomato into small pieces. We reserve for later.
3. We add the extra virgin olive oil to the paella. When the egg is hot, fry the onions with the peppers and carrots, this process takes about 15 minutes over high heat, always stirring carefully. We pour a little more extra virgin olive oil and the tomato very chopped, this we have to do when the previous vegetable is already poached so that the previous ingredients are not burned, the vegetables will release their juice and this will help us cook the rest of the ingredients.
4. Cut the chicken into small pieces and season with salt and pepper. Add the minced garlic cloves (it is best to have the chicken macerating for about 2 hours before preparing it so that the flavors come together). Add the chicken to the pan and spend it (about 10-15 min. At medium temperature) with the vegetables.
5. We stir about five minutes. As you can see, basically it is about chopping vegetables, meat and fish and adding them to the paella little by little.
6. We wash the mussels very well and set aside in a bowl.
7. We add the squid rings and the prawns. Stir everything carefully with a spoon 3-5 minutes over medium heat without haste. Regarding the spoon in Allariz we already have the official paella skimmer. I assure you that it reaches industrial oven temperatures … let’s see if we can get a better one next year.
8. To make this dish we have opted for a round grain rice that helps us control the recipe without problems. Cooking with a trusted brand with which we always succeed, Sabroz rice .
9. We introduce the rice and stir everything gently so that it is well impregnated with the stew and absorbs the flavor. Leave for 5 more minutes on medium heat. For the bomb rice issue, the exact measurements are 2 and a half broth for every 1 rice. In this case for 4 k of rice, 10 of liquid. Even so, if we observe that the rice is a little hard, but the paella is running out of sufficient liquid, we will gradually add more water until it is ready.
10. We mix the saffron in a liter of broth and once the rice has absorbed all the flavor of the stew we add the liters of broth in the pan. We raise the temperature to the maximum until it begins to boil and then we lower it to half and it is done little by little (this process lasts between 15-20 minutes, exactly, everything depends on the fire, they are usually 15 minutes for rice broth and 18 for a dry rice). Halfway through cooking we add the mussels so that they do not overdo it.
11. We rectify the liquid with the beer (right Manuel?) And we taste the rice. Each rice is a world and bomba rice is special, this variety differs from the rest for being a grain that does not break when cooked but bulges, increasing its size up to 3 times, with an accordion effect that allows it be loose and whole. It also has the property of being the rice that best absorbs the flavors and aromas of the broth ingredients.
12. We remove from the fire and let stand 10 minutes. We decorate with the lemons cut in half moons for those who want to dress it a little, although to my taste it takes away the flavor of the rice. And that’s it! But be careful that it burns! Serve it freshly and generously.

About A Festa do Boi – Allariz

The story tells that back in 1317 Xan de Arzúa, fed up with the mockery that the Christians received from the Jews during the Corpus Christi procession, appeared mounted on an ox and, with the help of his servants, expelled them. This event is commemorated each year by running an ox through the streets of the town, under the watchful eye and expert guardianship of the “Homes do Sedeño”.

The party begins on Saturday with the Proclamation and the “Proba do Boi”: one of the animals that were brought to the town days before is taken to the “Campo da Barreira” (in the vicinity of the Santa Clara Convent) to run between the crowd. There you can see the first song of the “Homes del Sedeño” which, gathered in a circle before releasing the ox, sing with their arms folded, celebrating that finally what they have been waiting for a whole year begins.

I leave you with the report of Dominic Arizona , an off-road character, from minute 1.50, enjoy it!