Seafood Fideua Pasta Paella

Prawn and clams come together on a bed of saffron and paprika infused fideos for a sumptuous seafood fideuà perfect for sharing.

Being a huge paella aficionado, I love exploring different styles of paella and couldn’t be more excited to find a seafood fideuá recipe from chef Omar Allibhoy’s new cookbook Paella. While lesser known than paella, fideuà is just as delicious but quicker and easier than making paella. Instead of bomba rice, fideuá features slender noodles called fideos. Prawn and clams come together on a bed of saffron and paprika infused fideos for a sumptuous Spanish feast perfect for sharing. Enjoy it with a glass of chilled white wine!

History of Fideuà

The origin of fideuá can be traced back to the Valencian port town of Gandía. According to the Asociación Gastronómica Fideuà de Gandia, the dish was created around 1912-1914 by a cook named Gabriel Rodriguez Pastor on the Santa Isabel fishing boat from the Port of Gandia.  When he was about to make paella for the crew, he couldn’t find any rice. Looking through the pantry, he found long fideos, cut them up, and cooked them the same way as the rice. Since then short length pasta called fideos are browned in olive oil then simmered in a rich shellfish broth flavored with saffron, paprika, tomato, and garlic. As the fideos cook, they soak up the seafood stock and flavors then crisp on the bottom of the pan. 

Ingredient Notes

• Noodles: fideuà is traditionally made with short thin noodles called fideos. They come in different sizes or ‘grades’ as No. 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5. Try different ones to find the texture you like. Angel hair pasta or spaghettini is a good substitute if you can’t find fideos.
• Paprika: paprika is a spice made from the combination of dried peppers from the Capsicum annum family, which include both sweet and hot peppers. Spanish paprika is known as pimentón and come in several varieties, like dulce (sweet), picante (spicy), agridulce (sweet and spicy combined to create a medium heat), and the famously smoked pimentón.Use sweet pimentón for this seafood fideuà recipe.
• Saffron: Saffron is an ancient culinary spice, derived from the stigmas of the fall-flowering plant Crocus sativus. It lends a beautiful golden color and aromatic flavor to foods. You can find it sold as red-gold threads or in ground form in the spice section at your local supermarkets.
• Stock: for this recipe, you can make your own seafood stock. A great alternative is Aneto Seafood Paella Cooking Base Broth.

What Kind of Protein to Use

For the seafood fideuà, I like to use prawns and clams. Feel free to use your favorite seafood, anything from firm whitefish (monkfish, halibut, or sea bass) squid, and octopus to shellfish.

How to Make the Aioli

• Put egg, garlic, lemon juice, and salt in a food processor. Process for 10 seconds until you get a yellow mixture.
• With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the canola oil through the feed tube in a steady stream, scraping down the sides as needed.
• Adjust seasoning to taste. Store aioli in airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

How to Cook the Fideuà

• Soak the clams in iced cold water for 1 hour. Drain and rinse. Set aside.
• Season the prawns with salt and set aside.
• Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in paella pan over a medium heat. Add fideo noodles, and cook, stirring often, until noodles are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.
• Add the remaining olive oil. Add garlic and chopped tomato and sautee for about 3 minutes. 
• Add seafood stock, saffron, and paprika and bring to a boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes. 
• Add the pasta back in and spread them evenly over the pan. Lay the prawns on the noodles and cook for 5 minutes. Turn the prawns over and cook for 2 minutes. If the stock starts to evaporate, add about ½ cup more stock. 
• Add the clams and push them down. Sprinkle remaining paprika over protein. Cook for another 4-5 minutes or until they open. Turn off heat. The noodles should be cooked but have some bite and the mixture slightly soupy.

Fideuà is traditionally served with aioli, parsley, and lemon. The aioli adds a bit of richness. You can make the aioli shared in the post or use your favorite store bought aioli.

For more Spanish recipe inspiration:

• Gambas a la plancha (Spanish grilled prawn tapas)
• Gambas al ajillo (garlic prawn tapas)
• Arroz negro (squid ink paella)