Spanish Fideua with Seafood (Fideuà de Marisco Recipe)
The Spanish Fideuà (Fideuà marisco) with seafood is a great pasta-based alternative to traditional paella, and even better it’s considerably easier to make. Fideuà is a one-pot recipe that becomes a hearty meal to share with friends or family. It tastes fantastic and this recipe can be made in under an hour with your choice of seafood!
Serving:
Main for 6 people
Ready in:
1 hour
Skill level:
Moderate
Serve with:
Aioli, and lemon wedges
How to make fideua with seafood
Ingredients
For the Fideuà:
- 3 tomatoes, grated and skin removed
- 4 cloves of Garlic chopped fine (or crushed)
- 1 medium onion, chopped fine
- 1 teaspoon of thyme dried
- 1 teaspoon of parsley dried
- 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika dried
- ½ teaspoon of fennel seeds dried (optional)
- ½ teaspoon of crushed Nora pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2 pinches of saffron
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 lemons for serving
- 500 g/17.5 oz fideuà or fideo Spanish noodles
- 400 g/14 oz uncooked prawns (around 12 large prawns)
- 300 g/10.5 oz small squid, cleaned and cut into small 1.25 cm (½ inch) pieces
For the Stock:
- 1 liter/1 quart of water
- 300g/10.5 oz fish head and bones
- 2 carrots
- Handful of fresh parsley
- Vegetable ends from the veggies above (onions, garlic, etc..)
- 1-2 teaspoons of salt
Equipment needed
- 1 large paella pan around 15inch/40cm in diameter at least. If you don’t have a paella pan, use the deepest pot you own around 12inch/30cm in diameter minimum.
- Box grater
- A large deep-sided pot with lid (for making the fish stock)
Watch our step-by-step video on how to make the perfect Fideua with seafood.
The history behind fideua
Hailing from the Valencian region, fideuà owes its creation to a picturesque Mediterranean town called Gandia, a loyal cook, starving sailors, and a fat captain! Fideuà was made in an attempt to curb the captain’s gluttonous interest in the dish, substituting rice with noodles. However, the new noodle dish failed miserably and many a sailor were left hungry. The dish is now highly regarded the world over!
Fideuà de Marisco, or Spanish Fideua with seafood is a great one-pot, a pasta-based alternative to traditional paella, and it’s considerably easier to make than paella. There’s also a seafood fideua recipe with black squid ink which is cooked in the same way.
While making fideuà takes a little longer than some other Spanish recipes, it’s definitely worth it! Just one taste of the soft pasta that’s combined with the fideuà spices, tomato, and seafood will have you coming back for more!
Ingredients and substitutions
Fideua with seafood can be made with simple ingredients you’ll find at any supermarket (except for maybe the noodles). Use whatever fresh seafood you can get ahold of, or if you’re more into a meatier version, fideuà can be made using a combination of meats such as chicken, pork, or rabbit.
No matter which way you choose to make it, you’ll have a delicious meal that not only looks impressive, it tastes incredible!
Types of Fideos
Much like pasta in Italy, fideuà pasta comes in a variety of different shapes and sizes. There are two main types of pasta that are commonly used for this dish. If you’re living anywhere in Spain, you’ll have no issue finding any of these. In other parts of the world, a Spanish grocery store will stock them or you can find them online.
Fideo
The most common is the thin vermicelli-like noodle, and this is often referred to by many brands as ‘Fideo’, and there are often 3 or 4 different sizes or ‘grades’ of the fideo pasta, usually cataloged as Fideo No. 1, 2, 3, 4, or No. 5.
These thin fideos cook a little faster than the fatter round-shaped fideuà pasta, so it’s worth trying out a few different types to see what you like best.
Fideuà
Spanish fideuà pasta looks a lot like small macaroni elbow pasta in shape and size. It takes a little longer to prepare compared to the thinner variety of fideo mentioned above. I prefer the fideuà pasta, mainly because of the lovely texture of the noodles and how they blend well with the seafood and other ingredients.
Noodle Substitute for Fideuà
If you find it difficult to find the fideo or fideua noodles, don’t despair. There are a few cheats that can get you through your noodle drought! Thin rice vermicelli noodles can also be substituted if you break them into pieces around an inch long. Just monitor them during cooking time.
How to make the ultimate Fideuà marisco
I was fortunate enough to learn this dish from one of the best Paella chefs in Valencia. When he showed me this recipe, he simply stated that I would never need to learn another dish to impress dinner guests once the fideuà was mastered. He was totally right!
I spent months trialing different ingredients and fine-tuning the spices and adding my twist based on his masterclass. Originally, he showed me a simple version using just prawns and squid, however, I’ve discovered that adding a few chunky fillets of white fish such as Monkfish, Dorada, Cod, or Lubina brings more wonderful flavors of the sea and really works well in a fideuà.
Of course, you can combine meats with this dish too, and we’ve given that a good crack from time to time. Here is a meat-based fideuà to try, but for this recipe, it’s all about the sea!
Equipment needed
As we mentioned earlier, this dish is great because it’s really a one-pot wonder! And honestly, it doesn’t matter too much what kind of pot or pan you use, as long as it’s deep enough to submerge all the noodles, then you’re good to go!
Ideally, You’ll need a large paella pan around 15inch/40cm in diameter at least. If you don’t have a paella pan, use the deepest pot you own around 12inch/30cm in diameter minimum.
Ingredients
- 3 tomatoes (grated and skin removed)
- 4 cloves of garlic (finely chopped or crushed)
- 2 medium onions (finely chopped)
- 1 teaspoon of thyme (dried)
- 1 teaspoon of parsley (dried)
- 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika (dried)
- ½ teaspoon of fennel seeds (dried)
- ½ teaspoon of crushed chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2 pinches of saffron
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 lemons (1 for serving)
- 500g/17.5 oz fideuà or fideo (Spanish noodles)
- 400g/14 oz uncooked prawns (around 12 large prawns)
- 200g/7 oz small prawns, tails peeled (for the stock)
- 300g/10.5 oz small squid (Cleaned and cut into small ½ inch pieces)
- 300g/10.5 oz of white fish fillets (Dorada, cod, or lubina are ideal) – Cut into inch/25 cm cubes
- 1 liter of fish stock (or make your own!)
Method (step-by-step)
- Step 1 – Prepare the Fish stock (optional)
- Add around 10-17oz (300-500g) worth of fish bones and offcuts (head, skin, tail, fins etc) into 1 liter of water and bring to a boil.
- Chop 2 carrots, add the offcuts of other veggies, and a handful of parsley.
- Season with 1-2 teaspoons of salt.
- reduce heat and simmer for at least 30 minutes (The longer the better, 1 hour is ideal)
- Once the stock has simmered, run through a sieve to remove any bones and vegetable chunks.
Short on time?
Alternatively, use a good quality fish stock that’s available from any good supermarket.
- Step 2 – Prepare the fideuà
- Heat a few tablespoons of oil in your large paella pan (or equivalent pan!). Add the chopped onion and cook 3-4 mins, occasionally stirring until the onion is golden.
- Reduce heat, and add the crushed garlic. Cook for another minute, but do not let the garlic burn.
- Add the grated tomato and fry for around 5-7 minutes or until the mixture becomes a little thicker in consistency.
- Add around half of the ground spices and herbs. Add a splash more olive oil if the mixture looks too dry.
- Move the sofrito to one side of the pan.
- Add the squid pieces with a little olive oil and cook on high heat for 2-3 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium, and the squid is cooked, mix in with the sofrito and transfer into a bowl.
- Don’t clean the pan, we’ll use that flavor in the next step.
- Step 3 – Prepare the Shrimp & Fish
- On medium heat, add the remaining olive oil and cook the large whole shrimp, again give the heads of the shrimp a little squeeze as they cook to release some extra flavor.
- Cook for around 3-4 minutes on each side, or until the shrimp are red and the shells char slightly.
- Remove shrimp from the pan and set it aside on a plate (we’ll add these to the top of the fideuà later!)
- (Optional) Add a little more oil and add the cubed fish. You should only need to cook for around a minute or two. Just enough to sear the fish. It will cook more in the next step.
- Step 4 – Cooking the fideuà
- The next step is to prepare the noodles. Using the same paella pan, return the tomato, onion, and squid mix to the pan on medium heat. Add 500g/1.1 lb of fideuà noodles and the remaining spices and stir through the mixture.
- Next, slowly add some of the stock, and mix well, keeping the ingredients as level and distributed around the pan as possible. Add the stock little by little, repeating this step every minute or two until the stock is ¼ inch above all the ingredients in the pan.
- Add the remaining spices and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Mix well and bring to a boil.
- Add the large prawns to the top of the fideuà and cook until you see no more bubbles coming from the mixture. All of the stock should have evaporated. This should take around 20 minutes on medium heat.
- Once the stock has evaporated, remove the fideuà from the heat and give 5 minutes to cool down before serving.
Step 5 – Allow to Cool, and Serving tips.
- Do as the Valencians do – Place a clean damp cloth over the fideuà for 5-10 minutes as it cools. This will allow the top of the pasta to cook and crisp up slightly.
- Serve with some fresh bread and a few generous wedges of lemon
- Fideuà is always best enjoyed when accompanied by a chilled glass of Valencian white wine.
Fideuà de Marisco (Fideuà with Seafood)
Equipment
- 40 cm/15 inch paella pan is ideal, although any deep pot or pan with 30-40cm/12-15 inch diameter works just fine.
Ingredients
- 3 tomatoes grated and skin removed
- 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped or crushed
- 2 medium onions finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon of thyme dried
- 1 teaspoon of parsley dried
- 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika dried
- ½ teaspoon of fennel seeds dried
- ½ teaspoon of crushed chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2 pinches of saffron
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil Extra-Virgin
- 2 lemons 1 for serving
- 500 g / 17.5 oz fideuà or fideo Spanish noodles
- 400 g / 14 oz uncooked prawns around 12 large prawns
- 200 g / 7 oz small prawns tails peeled (for the stock)
- 300 g / 10.5 oz small squid Cleaned and cut into small ½ inch pieces
- 300 g / 10.5 oz of white fish fillets Cod, Monkfish, or Sea Bass are ideal - Cut into inch/2.5 cm cubes
- 1 liter of fish stock
Instructions
Step 1 - Prepare the Fish stock
- Do this well in advance, first scale and fillet your chosen fish and put the head and other bones into a deep pot with 1.5 liters of water. Turn on the heat to medium and allow to come to the boil.
- In a frying pan, heat some olive oil and add the small whole prawns. As they begin to fry, use a fork or spatula to squash the heads of the prawns to release some flavor. Once they have cooked for around 5-6 minutes, remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- Once your large pan is boiling away, gently add the cooked prawns to the mixture. Season with some salt. Turn the heat down to low, and let simmer gently for around 2-3 hours.
- Once the stock has simmered, run through a sieve a few times to remove any bones and your stock is ready.
- Short on time? Alternatively use a good quality fish stock that’s available from any good supermarket.
Step 2 - Prepare the fideuà
- Heat a few tablespoons of oil in your large paella pan (or equivalent pan!). Finely chop the onion and add to the oil, cook 3-4 mins stirring occasionally until the onion is golden in color.
- Once the onion is golden, lower the heat and add 2 teaspoons of the crushed garlic. Cook for another minute or two, but do not let the garlic burn.
- Add the grated tomato and fry for around 5-7 minutes or until the mixture becomes a little thicker in consistency.
- While cooking, use a pestle and mortar to grind the paprika, parsley, thyme, fennel seeds, and chili flakes together.
- Make a well in the middle of the onion and tomato mix, pushing all the mix to the sides of the pan. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and one teaspoon of the spice mixture and give a good stir.
- Add the chopped squid to the well and mix with the spice mix and oil, cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring all the time.
- Once the squid is cooked, mix well with the onion and tomato mixture, remove from the heat and transfer the ingredients into a bowl for use later. Do not wash the pan, as we want to use some of the juices in the next step.
- On medium heat, add the remaining olive oil and cook the large whole prawns, again give the heads of the prawns a little squeeze as they cook to release some extra flavor. Cook for around 3-4 minutes on each side, or until the prawns are red and the shells begin to char slightly. In the last minute or two of cooking, add the remainder o the garlic and a dash more olive oil. This will stick the garlic to the prawns and give off a lovely aroma!
- Once cooked remove it from the pan and set it aside on a plate (we’ll add these to the top of the fideuà later!)
- Add a little more oil and add the cubed fish. You should only need to cook for around a minute or two. Just enough to sear the fish really. It will cook more in the next step.
Step 3 - Cooking the fideuà
- The next step is to prepare the noodles. Using the same paella pan, return the tomato, onion, and squid mix to the pan on medium heat. Add the 500g/1.1 lb of fideuà noodles and the remaining spices and stir through the mixture.
- Cut a lemon in half and give the lemon a good squeeze over the mixture, add the saffron and stir through.
- Next, slowly add some of the stock, and mix well, keeping the ingredients as level and distributed around the pan as possible. Add the stock little by little, repeating this step every minute or two until the stock is around level to ¼ inch above the ingredients in the pan.
- Add the large prawns to the top of the fideuà and cook until you see no more bubbles coming from the mixture. All of the stock should have evaporated. This should take around 20 minutes on medium heat.
- Once the stock has evaporated, remove the fideuà from the heat and give 5 minutes to cool down before serving.
- Serve with a few generous wedges of lemon, and always best enjoyed when accompanied by a cool glass of Valencian white wine.