Paila marina

Ingredients

Shellfish

• 500 gmussels
• 500 gclams or almejas
• 300 gpicorocos or prawns
• 200 gmachas or scallops
• 200 gsquid, sliced

Fish

• 400 gcongrio, hake or firm white fish, in chunks

Broth

• 1 litrefish stock
• 250 mldry white wine
• 2onions, finely chopped
• 4 clovesgarlic
• 1carrot, diced
• 1red pepper, diced

Seasoning

• 2 tbspoil
• 1 tspají de colour, paprika
• 1 tspground cumin
• 2bay leaves
• 1 bunchcoriander, chopped
• salt and black pepper

To serve

• clay paila bowls
• pebre
• lemon wedges
• bread

Directions

1. Heat the clay bowls in the oven before serving, because the whole point is that it arrives still boiling.
2. Discard any shellfish that stays open when tapped sharply, because it is dead. Purge the clams in cold salted water for an hour, then lift them out rather than pouring them, leaving the sand behind.
3. Fry the onion, carrot and pepper in the oil over a medium heat for 10 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, paprika and cumin and cook 30 seconds, off the heat if the pan is very hot.
4. Pour in the wine and let it bubble hard for 3 minutes. Reduce the wine properly before the stock goes in, or the broth tastes raw and sharp.
5. Add the fish stock and the bay leaves and simmer 10 minutes. Season the broth well now, before anything delicate goes in. Now add the shellfish and fish in order, by how long each takes.
6. Cover and cook 4 to 5 minutes until the shells have opened. Discard any that stayed shut rather than forcing them. Take it off the heat the moment the last shells open. Shellfish overcooks in under a minute and goes from tender to rubbery with almost no warning.
7. Stir in a large handful of chopped coriander. Ladle into the hot clay bowls, dividing the shellfish evenly, and pour the broth over. Serve immediately, still bubbling, with bread, pebre and lemon.

Technique

• Congrio, Chilean conger eel, is the classic fish and any firm white fish stands in.
• Picorocos, giant barnacles, are distinctly Chilean and rarely available elsewhere.
• The broth can be made ahead and the seafood added at the last minute.

Substitutions

• Any mix of mussels, clams, prawns and firm white fish.
• Hake, monkfish or cod for congrio.

Variations

• Mariscal, the same shellfish served cold with onion and lemon.
• With a splash of cream, which some restaurants add.
• Caldillo de congrio, the clearer conger soup Neruda wrote an ode to.

History

Shellfish and fish soup served bubbling in a clay paila on the coast, credited with reviving the hungover.

Frequently asked questions

What is Paila marina?

Paila marina is a soup & stew from Chile: shellfish and fish simmered in briny broth, coastal cure. Shellfish and fish soup served bubbling in a clay paila on the coast, credited with reviving the hungover.

How long does Paila marina take to make?

Paila marina takes 40 min of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Paila marina?

Yes, within limits. Any mix of mussels, clams, prawns and firm white fish. Hake, monkfish or cod for congrio.

What is the most important thing to get right in Paila marina?

Heat the clay bowls in the oven before serving, because the whole point is that it arrives still boiling.