This Is The Local + Easy Version Of The Spanish Paella That You Should Try
Paella is a common enough dish in the Philippines that when it comes to celebrations and fiestas, so we are not surprised to see it on the buffet table. However, the ingredients that you need for traditional paella-the rice variety, the various seafood, the all-important saffron, and even the seasonings-can be difficult to find or even to afford. (Saffron is
Since we have adopted many foreign dishes as our own, the paella is one of those dishes which we have localized and made easier to make by using ingredients more readily available. It's called the bringhe.
One of those ingredients which
For those who can't find kasubha, there is another natural coloring agent that's available you can use: turmeric or luyang dilaw. You can use the fresh root, peeled and chopped, or the powdered version to give your paella the yellow tinge it's known for.
Another substitute you can make to localize the paella is the type of rice used. The rice varieties in Spain are different from those cultivated here on the islands, so if Spain uses a short grain rice for their paella, we have and use the malagkit. Malagkit rice, or glutinous rice, is a medium-grain rice that has similar qualities needed for the rice used in the traditional version. This variety
These changes make a dish that is similar to the original paella, but what it's really about is making a dish we normally can't make into one that we can with ease. By localizing its ingredients, we changed its taste to conform to what is readily available and affordable, and it's still delicious. Here are bringhe recipes you can easily try:Â
This Christmas, make bringhe, or our local paella, a dish we transformed from a Spanish recipe with ingredients that anyone can more easily get a hold of to make it into a dish we can easily serve for our own fiestas and celebrations.Â
