fideua

It was September 2007 on our honeymoon in Barcelona that I first laid eyes on this dish.  Strolling along the famous La Rambla , I could see every restaurant having it on their menu with a photo of the dish right next to the popular paella.  I was intrigued but never had the chance to eat it - to which I regret to this day.  I was travelling with uberly cautious eaters who did not want to diverge far from the American dish.  I mean c'mon, how could you travel to Spain and eat at the Hard Rock Cafe?  There was the fear of the unfamiliar I suppose - which I understand.  Looking back, I should have sneaked out and went on a food adventure by myself.  Spain had so much stuff when it comes to food, and I just drooled past delicious looking seafood paella and fideua while touring the city.  But it was not all bad.  In the last few days when the decision of where to eat was just between me and my husband we took risks and there we found one great restaurant in the heart of Barcelona.  I will have to save the review on that restaurant for another post.
Going back to the fideua, when I saw the recipe on another blog I was immediately inspired to make it.  Afterall, I had a new paella pan to use.  It did not seem difficult to make and the ingredients were easy to find.  The original recipe from Bon Appetit May 1992 did not include shrimp but I added about 1/2 lb to add more to the protein.  I also coarsely chopped the kielbasa for the sake of my little one =)
Traditionally a noodle called fideo is used in the dish (hello, it's called fideua!).  It's a very thin noodle with about  1 to 2 inches in length.  If you can find fideo use that by all means but if not you can use angel hair pasta as a substitute.  Just break them in halves or quarters.

Kielbasa and Mushroom Fideua

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 pound onions, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 pound mushrooms, quartered
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
• 3 cups canned low-salt chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 5 ounces kielbasa or Spanish chorizo or other garlic sausage, coarsely chopped
• 3/4 pound fideo or angel hair pasta
• 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Minced fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat olive oil in heavy deep paella pan skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until tender, stirring frequently, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté 4 minutes. Add paprika and cayenne and stir just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and bell pepper and sauté 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, wine, chorizo. Bring mixture to simmer. Break pasta in half and add to pan. Cook until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Arrange shrimps on top and set pan in oven and bake until all liquid is absorbed and pasta is crusty, about 25 minutes (turn the shrimps half way to being done).  Sprinkle with parsley.