Recipe of Rice to the Murcian Cauldron

Arroz caldero is a traditional dish of Murcian cuisine, characterized by its intense fish flavor. To achieve this, a good fish broth is made with the bones or the whitebait that they sell in the fishmongers, which is made up of several small fish that are only used to make a good broth, and a good fried sauce colored by the ñoras and the tomato..

This is a dish that was prepared by fishermen using a large cauldron, hence the name cauldron rice. Traditionally, it is accompanied with the fish separately, just as we have done

Ingredients to make Rice to the Murcian cauldron:

1. 400 grams of bomba rice
2. 1 kilogram of whitebait or fish bones
3. 2 sea bass or sea bream
4. 3 peppers
5. 3 cloves of garlic
6. 300 grams of crushed tomato
7. 3 threads of saffron
8. 1 splash of olive oil
9. 1 pinch of salt

How to make Rice to the Murcian cauldron:

•  Fish is ready, take it out and reserve it.
• In the same pan, add the noras and the garlic and cook over medium heat until the garlic begins to color, but paying attention that they do not burn because this would spoil the sauce. Add the tomato and let it all cook together for about 10 minutes.
• On the other hand, prepare the fish broth that will flavor the caldero rice. To do it, put the whitebait or bones in a saucepan, cover with water, about a liter and a half or 2 liters, and add a little salt. Cook over medium heat.
• Once the sofrito is ready, blend it all with the electric mixer. When the broth is halfway through cooking, that is, after about 10 minutes, add the crushed sofrito and let it all cook for about 10-15 minutes. Strain the broth and reserve it to continue with the recipe for rice in the cauldron.
• Pour the broth into the pan or paella where you are going to prepare the rice. You will need about a liter and a half, so if you have any leftover you can save it in case you need to add more. The arroz caldero is a bit sweeter, so you may need to use a little more broth later.
• Add the rice and the saffron threads. Let it cook for 10 minutes and test to see if it is necessary to rectify with salt. Let it be done. In total, this rice usually needs between 18 and 20 minutes of cooking, although the total time can vary depending on the type of rice used and the degree of doneness that you like.
• When you see that you have about 5 minutes left for the rice to be ready, add the fish on top to finish cooking. When the rice in the Murcian cauldron is ready, turn off the heat and let it rest for 5 minutes.