“I love cooking because it brings people together,” shared Bryson McGlynn, a rising seventh grader at Opelika Middle School. “So many of my memories center around great hangouts and good food. I love creating different dishes, sharing them with others, and watching people smile.”
Bryson describes himself as a ‘good ole southern boy’ who loves to play baseball, fish, and golf, hang out with his friends, and is a total Auburn fan. His favorite subjects are percussion and science. He lives at home with his parents, Mike and Shannon, and his Cane Corso pup, Brick.
Bryson has been helping his parents in the kitchen since he was just a toddler.
“Over the years, he was able to take on more responsibilities, from smashing potatoes to grilling with his dad,” shared Shannon. “Inspired by attending cooking competitions with Mike, Bryson began competing in Kids Ques, where he found support and mentorship within the Steak Cookoff Association and the Auburn/Opelika restaurant community.”
Following a trampoline accident, Bryson had to take a season off from baseball. It was during this time that his passion for cooking grew and he decided to take his love of cooking to new levels and places, including social media, with several platforms called “Cookin’ with Cheese Curd.”
Bryson has many accolades for his cooking. Most recently, he was named the winner of Gordon Ramsey’s Master Chef Junior—Season 9.
“I am so excited that I had the amazing experience in the Master Chef Junior kitchen. I have watched this show since I was little and always dreamed of cooking with Chef Ramsey,” Bryson shared.
Bryson shares his Seafood Paella recipe for this month’s Dinner’s Ready recipe.
“I love this dish because it is extremely tasty and can be easily adapted to the reader’s taste,” said Bryson. It is versatile, and you can update it with different proteins and never get bored.”
Seafood Paella
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup of garlic-infused olive oil
- 1 purple onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 Roma tomatoes, diced
- 1 cup of celery, diced
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2-4 green bay leaves
- 1 pinch of saffron
- 2 tablespoons of Cajun PitGrit Seasoning (also sprinkle on shrimp and final dish at plating)
- 2 tablespoons of Lanes SPG Rub
- ½ teaspoon of turmeric
- 8 to 10 jumbo shrimp for plating
- 1 pound of medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- ½ pound of mussels
- 2 (13.5 oz) cans of coconut milk
- 1 lemon for garnishing
- 2 cups of Calrose Rice
Directions:
- Dice onions, tomatoes, and peppers.
- Add ¼ cup of garlic-infused olive oil to ceramic-coated cast iron paella pot.
- Allow olive oil to heat in the bottom of the pot for about 2 minutes.
- Add garlic, tomatoes, onion, and peppers to the pot and sauté. You want these to render down, but you don’t want them too soft because they will cook as the dish progresses.
- Add medium-sized shrimp to the pot and season with Lanes SPG Rub.
- Sauté until shrimp are pink and cooked through.
- Add two (2) cans of coconut milk, 2 green bay leaves, turmeric seasoning, and saffron seasoning to the paella pot.
- Bring the dish to a boil.
- Add 2 cups of the Calrose rice.
- Once it is brought back to a boil, reduce the heat to low. You really want to create a crust along the bottom of the dish, but be careful because the coconut milk and contents could cause it to stick and burn the bottom. Just continue to watch.
- Cook for around 25 minutes, until it forms a crust. Shake the pot pretty continuously to keep it from burning while the crust forms.
- Sauté the jumbo shrimp in a cast iron skillet with a little bit of garlic-infused olive oil and sprinkle with Cajun PitGrit Seasoning. These shrimp are for plating the dish at the end. Cook until done or the color is pink throughout.
- Add the mussels into the pot and cook so that they open up but you don’t break the shells.
- Season the contents of the pot by sprinkling Cajun PitGrit on the top.
- Plate the dish with the contents of the bowl. Add the mussels to the center and the jumbo shrimp. Add slices of lemon on the sides of the dish and garnish the top with finely chopped parsley.
