A favorite Valencian tapa as well as a popular main dish, especially along the Costa Blanca. A cold beer might go best with this piquant tapa.

Clean and skin eels and cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a casserole or skillet, add paprika, and stir in enough water to cover eels. Bring to a boil and add pieces of eel. Meanwhile with a mortar and pestle or in an electric blender crush garlic, almonds, parsley, and saffron with enough olive oil to make a smooth paste. Stir mixture into casserole, add salt to taste, and cook for about 20 minutes or until eels are done. Add more water if sauce thickens. Serve hot.

carrots, or new potatoes (or all three) and serve over rice, as they do in Valencia.

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