Just off the 110 Freeway, just north of San Pedro, La Española has just about everything a novice paella maker could want (including, on Saturdays, paella).

The party guests have gathered around the operation to watch. Ginnie Donovan is itching to stir. "No, you don't stir it," cautions Esteve. "That makes it mushy.

Perfecto Rocher is the executive chef of Smoke.Oil.Salt., who also happens to be a third-generation paella maker from Spain’s Valencia region, where he worked at his grandfather’s restaurant.

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