Weekly Recipe: Fideuà By Kōbo in NYC

Adventurous American eaters have all surely enjoyed a great paella, but have you ever tried fideuà?

The Mediterranean specialty is a similar seafood dish that celebrates bright and refreshing flavors with stick-to-your-ribs heft, but instead of rice, fideuà is made with delicious pasta.

See also: Weekly Recipe: Grilled Spanish Mackerel By Fish Cheeks NYC

It’s a signature dish at Kōbo, New York City’s contemporary Mediterranean restaurant, inspired by chef Ruben Rodriguez’s travels in the region. ​The menu boasts a variety of sharable plates and starters, but its the seven handmade pastas, of which the fideuà is one of the most popular, that really bring Kōbo to greatness.

Luckily, you don’t have to travel to Spain or even NYC to get a taste of chef Rodriguez’s delightful fideuà because he’s graciously shared his recipe with our readers below.

It’s mostly about the technique with this one, and chef says a paella pan is an absolute must. Don’t let that scare you, though, because fideuà is also all about having some fun!

Fideuà

Ingredients:

• 1 quart saffron-infused seafood stock
• ½ pc red pepper
• ½ pc green pepper
• ½ pc Spanish onion
• 3 pc peeled garlic cloves
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp white wine
• ½ lb squid and tentacles
• 2 tbsp squid ink
• ½ lb angel hair (Fideua)
• Salt to taste
• Paella pan

Directions:

1. Make a fondo (it’s a paella sofrito). Slowly cook all your veggies, and towards the end, add a few hairs of saffron and adjust with salt.
2. Set this aside, and preheat your oven to 350°F.
3. Break the pasta into small pieces, then place into a tray and toast in the oven. Once the pasta is toasted, set aside.
4. Turn your oven up to 425°F.
5. Finely chop the onions and slowly cook with the garlic.
6. Once the onions are cooked, add the calamari and tentacles (make sure they are as dry as possible). Turn on the heat as high as possible to eliminate water content and prevent the calamari from shrinking.
7. Add the white wine as well as a bit of broth, and slowly cook for about 15 minutes.
8. Add 2 tablespoons of squid ink, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, and a pinch of sugar. Mix all of this together with a bit of hot water and add the calamari to finish cooking until tender but with a nice texture. The calamari should not be falling apart.
9. Drain the broth and set the calamari aside

Fideuà

1. Add Olive Oil to the paella pan.
2. Add 1 tbsp of your fondo.
3. Add 1 cup of the toasted pasta.
4. Add the calamari you have previously cooked.
5. Cover, set aside and cook at medium heat until the fideuà is about 75 percent done, and then place the pan into the oven for about 5 to 10 minutes.
6. You will know it’s ready when the dish becomes dry, and the pasta looks like it is standing up.

Visit Kōbo in New York City and online for more delicious dishes and inspiration.