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Cleopatra used saffron, the essential spice of paella, in her baths to make lovemaking more pleasurable!..... The part of the paella most fought over, apart from the recipe of course, is the 'socarrat', the delicious caramelized underbelly of the rice. That's why you mustn't keep stirring.... The dish gets it's name from the pan, the 'paella.' There are arguments about the use of the word 'paellera' for the pan but it is generally considered wrong. Saffron cultivation dates back 3000 years. The spice is derived from crocus stamens. The Paella King contest is an annual competition held in a different town in Galicia, Spain every year. Whoever makes the best Paella is the "Paella King" for the year until the next competition.
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The largest paella measured 20m, 65ft 7in, in diameter and was made byJuan Carlos Galbis and a team of helpers in Valencia, Spain on 8 Mar 1992.It was eaten by 100,000 people.
There is an old story of how the Moorish kings' servants created rice dishes by mixing the leftovers from royal banquets in large pots to take home. In the Arab countries, it is often wrongly believed that the word paella originatesfrom the Arabic word baqiyah, meaning leftovers.
Extra-virgin olive oil comes from the first pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil.
Eating about two tablespoons (23 grams) of olive oil daily may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease due to the monounsaturated fat in olive oil.
Documentation of saffron's use over the span of 4,000 years in the treatment of some 90 illnesses has been uncovered. It is believed to reduce blood pressure.
Tradition suggests that paella should chiefly be eaten on Sundays or Festival days and only for lunch, never dinner. But we can ignore that!