San Bartolomé de Tirajana bid farewell to its festivities with the traditional Giant Paella in El Tablero, an event that brought together around 5,000 locals and visitors. The gathering, marked by a great atmosphere and the flavor of rice, established itself as a festive and gastronomic meeting point in the south of Gran Canaria.
The logistics of cooking for 5000 people 🍳
The technical deployment to feed such a crowd required precise planning. Paella pans several meters in diameter were used, capable of distributing heat evenly over direct fire. Temperature control, the exact amount of broth, and the timing of the ingredients were critical factors to prevent the rice from being overcooked or undercooked, a challenge that few chefs successfully take on.
The dilemma of the grain on the edge 🔥
As with any massive paella, the debate over who got the crispier part from the edge was intense. Some argued that the socarrat was the best part, while others pointed out that, in industrial quantities, it looked more like charcoal than rice. In the end, everyone agreed that hunger was the best seasoning.