After the first spoonfuls, Jenny Peña, Hotel InterContinental’s PR consultant, and I looked at each other. We both exclaimed: “Wow!”

It was the best paella we’ve ever tasted (and we’ve tasted quite a lot). The fish stock, the fish cream, the seafood—they had all generously imparted their essence on the rice grains, imbuing the rice with an unusually rich flavor, depth and lusciousness.

But perhaps that was only to be expected, what with all the ingredients and labor that went into the making of the paella. We were at Hotel InterCon’s Prince Albert Rotisserie, where chef Victor Armero Torres had just conducted cooking lessons on Spanish cuisine. Top of the list, of course, was the paella, the iconic rice dish that originated as peasant fare in Valencia, Spain, but which has since found its way to the best restaurants of the world.

As chef of El Jardin, the fine dining restaurant of InterContinental Madrid, chef Victor knows his paella. And while there may be simpler ways to cook this dish, for chef Victor, it’s not about being fast and easy. His recipe needs plenty of preparation as well as attention.

The fish stock, the fish “cream,” the homemade tomato sauce—all must be done ahead even before the first grain of rice touches the paella pan. And each of those elements requires peeling, slicing, stirring, not to mention copious amounts of patience.

But as Jenny and I and the rest of the class discovered, the humongous efforts are worth it. Slow-cooked, gently stirred and watched ever so vigilantly, this paella is as much a delectable dish as it is a reward for a job well done.

Seafood Paella

Makes 6-8 servings

For the fish “cream”:

1 head garlic, crushed
2 stems leeks, diced
1 stem celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 onion, diced
1 c olive oil
1 stalk fresh rosemary, or ½ tsp dried rosemary
1 stalk fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 k lapu lapu, maya maya or any white fish, scales, bones and skin removed, then sliced into fillets
1 c white wine
1 ripe tomato, sliced
2 c water
1 slice day-old bread

For the fish stock:

1½ k maya-maya or lapu-lapu or any white fish
½ c olive oil
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
1 onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 pinch of saffron thread
16 c water
Salt

For the tomato sauce:

¼ c olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 400-g can peeled tomatoes

For the paella:

¼ c olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
Salt
½ k squid, ink sacs and skin removed, then cut into rings
2 c short-grain rice such as Arborio or Japanese rice
½ c prepared fish “cream”
½ c prepared tomato sauce
5 c prepared fish stock
1 tbsp Knorr beef broth base (or chicken powder)
½ k medium to large size unpeeled prawns
½ k mussels, cleaned and previously steamed, shells opened
½ k large shrimps, peeled

To serve:

2 tbsp finely diced garlic
2 tbsp finely chopped parsley leaves
½ c olive oil
Lemon wedges

Make the fish cream:

In a large saucepan, combine garlic, leeks, celery, carrots, onions and olive oil. Simmer for 20 minutes over low heat. Add rosemary, thyme, pepper and fish. Simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes. Add white wine and tomatoes. Simmer until alcohol evaporates, around five minutes. Pour in water and continue simmering for another 30 minutes. Add day-old bread and simmer until liquid thickens (the bread acts as a thickener). By this time, the liquid would have been greatly reduced. Strain into a bowl and set the liquid aside (discard the solids).

Make the fish stock:

Remove skin and bones from fish and cut into fillet sizes (or you can have this done in the market when you buy the fish). Heat olive oil in a large stockpot and sauté fish, peppers, carrots, onions and garlic. Add saffron and continue sautéing for about five to 10 minutes. Pour in water then season lightly with salt. Bring to a boil then lower heat to simmer. Let simmer for 20 minutes. Strain into a bowl, pressing on the solids to extract more liquid. Set the liquid aside and discard the solids.

Make the tomato sauce:

In a skillet, heat olive oil and sauté garlic. Pour in tomatoes and the juices. Press on the tomatoes to crush them. Simmer for about five minutes while stirring occasionally.

Cook the paella:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). In a paellera or any shallow, wide, ovenproof pan, heat the olive oil to medium and sauté the onions and bell peppers. Season well with salt. Add squid and continue sautéing. Add the rice and stir so rice gets coated with the oil. Add the prepared fish “cream” and tomato sauce and stir gently to blend. Pour in five cups of the prepared fish stock. Let simmer while stirring continuously for around five minutes. Stir in beef broth base and continue simmering over medium heat while stirring the mixture gently for about five minutes more.

Add the prawns, mussels and shrimps, distributing them around the rice. Simmer for around five minutes, then transfer the pan to the preheated oven. Let cook until all the liquid has been absorbed and rice is fully cooked, around 15 minutes.

To serve:

Combine garlic, parsley and olive oil. Pour all over the top of the paella. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

For more tips, recipes and stories, visit author’s blog: www.normachikiamco.com and Facebook fan page: www.facebook.com/normachikiamco. Follow on Twitter @NormaChikiamco.

Cook’s tips

1. Make sure the mussels are very fresh. Use mussels only when there’s no threat of red tide.

2. Do not add the fish bones when making the fish stock, advises InterCon executive chef Alisdair Bletcher, or the liquid will become cloudy. Or, if you wish to add the fish bones, simmer the stock for less than 20 minutes.

Saffron is available in specialty stores such as Terry’s, Santis Delicatessen and La Tienda, as well as in big supermarkets like Rustan’s and Landmark. It’s quite expensive but you need just a few threads of it for the paella. Store remaining saffron in a tightly covered container away from direct sunlight.