Fat Rice

PreparationFor marinated chicken: Whisk garlic, lemon juice, paprika, curry powder, and turmeric in a medium bowl; add chicken and toss to coat. Cover and chill at least 6 hours. DO AHEAD: Chicken can be marinated 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. For raisins: Bring raisins, vinegar, and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in a small saucepan, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid evaporates, 8-10 minutes. DO AHEAD: Raisins can be prepared 3 days ahead. Let cool, then cover and chill. For soffritto: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add bell peppers and onion; season with salt. Cook, stirring often, until softened, 8-10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are caramelized, 45-60 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste to skillet and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until tomato paste begins to darken, 10-15 minutes longer. Mix in vinegar and paprika; season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Soffritto can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool, then cover and chill. For rice: Remove chicken from marinade; season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy 5-6-quart pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Cook chicken, skin side down, until skin is brown and crisp, 10-12 minutes; transfer to a plate. (You can remove bones at this point, if desired.) Reduce heat to medium. Add chorizo to pot and cook, stirring often, until crisp, about 2 minutes; transfer to a small bowl. Add soffritto to pot and cook, stirring constantly, until sizzling, about 1 minute. Add broth, scraping up any browned bits; season with salt (salting liquid adequately here is important for flavorful rice). Add rice, sausage, chorizo, and raisins. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, arrange chicken on top, cover pot, and simmer gently, until rice is tender, 20-25 minutes. Uncover; increase heat to medium-high. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons oil around edges of pot and cook, undisturbed, until underside of rice is crunchy, about 5 minutes longer. For prawns and clams: While rice is cooking, mix garlic, fermented beans, if using, cilantro stems, and chiles in a small bowl. Peel prawns, leaving heads and tails on. Devein, stuff cut side with garlic mixture, and set aside. Combine clams and wine in a large skillet, cover, and cook over high heat, stirring often, until clams open (discard any that do not open), about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer clams to a large bowl. Reduce heat to medium-low. Lightly season prawns with salt and cook in same skillet until opaque in the centers, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer prawns to bowl with clams; pour pan juices into a small bowl. DO AHEAD: Prawns can be stuffed 1 hour ahead. Cover and chill. For assembly: Mix gochugaru, cayenne, and salt in a small bowl. Dip cut sides of lemon wedges into seasoning mix. Top rice with prawns and clams and drizzle with reserved pan juices. Top with lemon wedges, eggs, olives, pickled chiles and peppers, and scallions. A Doable FeastPulling off this centerpiece-worthy dish is a matter of knowing when to get serious (hint: prep!) and when to chill. Here's our approach. Strategize Most of this dish can be made in advance: Plump the raisins and caramelize the soffritto up to three days ahead. Marinate the chicken thighs and scrub the clams the day before. After that, everything except the shellfish, which should be cooked just before you eat, comes together in a single pot. Improvise There's no one way to make arroz gordo. Fat Rice's recipe uses chef Abraham Conlon's favorite ingredients, but if they're not yours, change them up. Can't find head-on prawns? Use regular shrimp and skip the stuffing. Clams not pristine? Move on: It's more important to use the best ingredients. Attack Set the pot of Fat Rice on the table and let guests dig in: This is not a dish for shy eaters, as you'll see when everybody starts tackling the shellfish on top. The best part—scraping away the dark, crisped patches of rice from the bottom of the pot—is saved for last.

PreparationFor marinated chicken: Whisk garlic, lemon juice, paprika, curry powder, and turmeric in a medium bowl; add chicken and toss to coat. Cover and chill at least 6 hours. DO AHEAD: Chicken can be marinated 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. For raisins: Bring raisins, vinegar, and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in a small saucepan, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid evaporates, 8-10 minutes. DO AHEAD: Raisins can be prepared 3 days ahead. Let cool, then cover and chill. For soffritto: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add bell peppers and onion; season with salt. Cook, stirring often, until softened, 8-10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are caramelized, 45-60 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste to skillet and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until tomato paste begins to darken, 10-15 minutes longer. Mix in vinegar and paprika; season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Soffritto can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool, then cover and chill. For rice: Remove chicken from marinade; season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy 5-6-quart pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Cook chicken, skin side down, until skin is brown and crisp, 10-12 minutes; transfer to a plate. (You can remove bones at this point, if desired.) Reduce heat to medium. Add chorizo to pot and cook, stirring often, until crisp, about 2 minutes; transfer to a small bowl. Add soffritto to pot and cook, stirring constantly, until sizzling, about 1 minute. Add broth, scraping up any browned bits; season with salt (salting liquid adequately here is important for flavorful rice). Add rice, sausage, chorizo, and raisins. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, arrange chicken on top, cover pot, and simmer gently, until rice is tender, 20-25 minutes. Uncover; increase heat to medium-high. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons oil around edges of pot and cook, undisturbed, until underside of rice is crunchy, about 5 minutes longer. For prawns and clams: While rice is cooking, mix garlic, fermented beans, if using, cilantro stems, and chiles in a small bowl. Peel prawns, leaving heads and tails on. Devein, stuff cut side with garlic mixture, and set aside. Combine clams and wine in a large skillet, cover, and cook over high heat, stirring often, until clams open (discard any that do not open), about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer clams to a large bowl. Reduce heat to medium-low. Lightly season prawns with salt and cook in same skillet until opaque in the centers, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer prawns to bowl with clams; pour pan juices into a small bowl. DO AHEAD: Prawns can be stuffed 1 hour ahead. Cover and chill. For assembly: Mix gochugaru, cayenne, and salt in a small bowl. Dip cut sides of lemon wedges into seasoning mix. Top rice with prawns and clams and drizzle with reserved pan juices. Top with lemon wedges, eggs, olives, pickled chiles and peppers, and scallions. A Doable FeastPulling off this centerpiece-worthy dish is a matter of knowing when to get serious (hint: prep!) and when to chill. Here's our approach. Strategize Most of this dish can be made in advance: Plump the raisins and caramelize the soffritto up to three days ahead. Marinate the chicken thighs and scrub the clams the day before. After that, everything except the shellfish, which should be cooked just before you eat, comes together in a single pot. Improvise There's no one way to make arroz gordo. Fat Rice's recipe uses chef Abraham Conlon's favorite ingredients, but if they're not yours, change them up. Can't find head-on prawns? Use regular shrimp and skip the stuffing. Clams not pristine? Move on: It's more important to use the best ingredients. Attack Set the pot of Fat Rice on the table and let guests dig in: This is not a dish for shy eaters, as you'll see when everybody starts tackling the shellfish on top. The best part—scraping away the dark, crisped patches of rice from the bottom of the pot—is saved for last.