How to choose a good paella

Paella is a classic recipe of our gastronomy that has become a very common resource in all homes, especially for weekdays and family gatherings. Rice dishes and fideuás are perfect recipes to satisfy everyone, and many times even allow you to eat as a single dish.

To prepare a paella you need two essential things: good food and a good paella pan (or paella pan, as the manufacturers say). Today we analyze why it is worth investing in a good paella pan, which paella pans we recommend and the differences between the Carbone and Mineral paella pans from De Buyer.

Benefits of having a good paella

To make rice or fideuá you need to spread the food very well to make a very thin layer, which you will cook with broth. This means having a large surface area, even when cooking for a few, which means that the paella pan is often much larger than the gas, vitro or induction disc. Why do I mention this? Because a good distribution of temperature throughout the utensil is vital for homogeneous cooking of these recipes, especially when the food (rice or noodles) is so susceptible to rapidly absorbing the water from the hot broth (which is why it has to rise in temperature evenly).

Disadvantages of a low-quality paella

There are many paella pans (or paella pans) on the market, many of them very thin and simple. The disadvantages of poor quality paella pans are:

• They are extremely thin , which means that the utensil does not have time to distribute the heat correctly , causing the heat to quickly concentrate in the center and become very hot at that point, burning the rice or noodles, and often not even boiling at the ends, and causing the food there to remain raw.
• Thinness also implies deformation : many of these simpler paellas deform with heat, causing them to lack stability and the juices to concentrate in one part of the pan, not achieving (once again) homogeneous cooking.
• Use of unhealthy materials : There are paella pans on the market that claim to be made of iron, but they may be low-quality alloys , with the presence of heavy materials such as lead or cadmium in the alloy, which are undesirable for health. On the other hand, there are very simple non-stick paella pans, which will lead to not distributing heat well or not lasting very long with their non-stick properties in good condition.
• Another thing to keep in mind with the simplest paella pans is the enamelling: there are paella pans that are enamelled (painted or coated with enamel) and enamels may not be very suitable for health or for reaching a high temperature. In this sense, it is important to get a paella pan from recognised brands, which are concerned with the use of quality materials.

Our recommendation when choosing paella

The first thing you need to decide is whether you want a non-stick or cast iron paella pan.

If you are looking for the convenience of having a paella pan that is not excessively heavy, distributes heat well and ensures that the food does not stick, choose a non-stick paella pan. A good option for this purpose is the Efficient non-stick paella pan from BRA : it has a quality non-stick coating, which will last a long time in good condition if you take care of it* and has removable handles, making it completely suitable for the oven. All this, with a really high quality-price ratio.

For those looking for traditional cooking and don't mind the weight of the pan, we definitely recommend choosing an iron paella pan. We have two from De Buyer in the shop that give you fabulous results and are the most popular paella pans, with good reason: the Carbone paella pan and the Mineral paella pan . They do require some consideration when it comes to maintaining them (since iron is more likely to stick or rust), but once you get used to them and see how easy it is, there's no comparison in the results and uses you give them.

From left to right: BRA Efficient non-stick paella pan , Carbone paella pan and the Mineral paella pan from De Buyer.

Both the Mineral and Carbone paella pans are made from a sheet of iron which is shaped. They are quite thick (which makes them a bit heavy), but the main advantages they have are :

• The thickness of the paella pan helps to distribute the heat better, and also to retain it, keeping the paella hot for longer as well.
• They are made with natural materials, free of non-stick coatings.
• It is a completely traditional cooking method, and you get the most fabulous flavour results.
• These are eternal paella pans, they will last you a lifetime in the kitchen, because there is nothing in them that can get damaged (the iron darkens, but it is part of the curing process, they are pieces that will last you forever).
• Both are oven safe.

Differences between the Mineral and Carbone paella pans from De Buyer

The two De Buyer paella pans are very similar, but the main differences to consider when deciding on one or the other are:

1. The handles: the Mineral paella pan is made of steel and looks more elegant, but the Carbone's handles are actually very comfortable to hold.
2. The Mineral only comes in a 32 cm size (one of the most common sizes for paella pans, if not the most common one), whereas the Carbone offers many diameters to choose from (from 24 cm to 50 cm).
3. Curing: The Mineral paella pan comes with a natural beeswax coating. This coating is an organic component that allows you to do a simple curing with oil (before using the paella pan for the first time, you will only have to heat a finger of oil for about 10 minutes and remove it, to fill any pores it may have and prevent it from sticking and rusting) - you can see how to do the curing in a Mineral here . In the case of the Carbone, it does not require any prior treatment and you have to do a traditional curing, first boiling potato peelings in it and, the second step, boiling a finger of oil ( here you will see how to do this curing).**
4. The % of iron in each paella pan: the Mineral paella pan is made from practically pure iron (over 99% iron), while the Carbone pan is made from a mineral alloy, which is not as pure as the previous one. Despite this, it is more than 90% pure iron, and this has no implications given that paella pans, unlike frying pans, are not utensils that we use on a daily basis (in which we always want to use the most natural utensils possible).
5. Due to the finishes and quality of the handles, materials and the beeswax treatment, the Mineral paella pan is somewhat more expensive than the Carbone.

GRADES:

*By taking care of a non-stick paella pan we mean: do not use metal utensils to cook in it, wash it by hand and heat it over medium-low heat at first, until the entire surface has been heated.

**Curing paella pans is really easy, don't be scared. If you watch the videos we have provided a link to, you will see. It is just a step or two before first use, but it is not complicated at all and you will have it done in a few minutes. This will give the paella pans natural protection that will help prevent your rice and fideuás from sticking, and it will also protect against oxidation.