Paella

Yes, you read the title right. I am going to give you a recipe for paella. But I post this with much trepidation...there are many, many, many, MANY ways to make paella. A lady in my church is famous for her paella so twice I went to her house to watch the whole process and take pages (and pages) of notes to get it right. Then I brought her recipe home and modified it a little bit so admittedly it's kind of an Americanized version of paella. But I've made this four times now and the last time was super yummy. It's taken some practice for me to perfect this dish, especially the rice part.

But I wanted to give you all this recipe so you could bring some Spanish cooking into your home because paella is one of our favorite foods. It is incredibly flavorful and easy to make once you have made it a few times. But don't despair if it doesn't turn out how you want it to the first time...keep practicing!

Ok a note about saffron. I've asked several Spaniard women if they use it or not and literally half the woman say they do and half that they don't. So if you can't or don't use it, it's ok, it will still taste good. It just won't be yellow, which is the color people associate with paella. Here in Spain you can buy the colorante to make it yellow but don't worry about this. I do remember Trader Joe's selling saffron and I've been told a pinch would suffice.

Also let me say something about rice. The manner of cooking rice is kind of like how we would cook pasta. It's still the same ratio: 1 part rice and 2 parts rice. But you don't cover it until it is almost cooked. The key is the heat: if your stovetop is too high, the water will cook off too quickly before the rice is cooked, but if the heat is too low, then it will take too long to cook and not taste right. So you can start with medium-high heat, stir a few times, and if you see the liquid disappearing before the rice is cooking, start lowering the heat. Once the rice is almost soft, then you turn off the heat and cover it to finish cooking. 

One final note is about what type of pan to use. Here in Spain we use special pans that are wide and with a high side, like a frying pan with a lid. You don't need a special type of pan to cook it in; just use your biggest frying pan and use a lid when you cook the veggies and rice. 

So, without further ado, here is my recipe for Paella...

Paella

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup Olive Oil

Salt 

1 pound Chicken Breast, Cubed

200 g Frozen, Deveined Shrimp

1 Onin, Diced finely in a food processor

3 cloves Minced Garlic

1 Red Bell Pepper, Diced finely in a food processor

1 Can Diced Tomatoes, With Juice

½ bag frozen Peas

1/2 bag frozen artichoke hearts

1 bag frozen green beans

2 cups Rice

4 cups Water

Pinch of saffron

Lemon Wedges On Table

Directions: 

With skillet on high heat, heat oil. When it is shimmering, add chicken pieces and season with salt. Keeping heat turned up very high, turn to brown evenly and keep cooking until chicken is nice and browned. Add shrimp after about 5 minutes and cook until shrimp is also done cooking. Add onions and garlic and stir to cook for 2-3 minutes. Then add tomatoes and bell pepper and cook for about 5 minutes more. Throughout adding meats and veggies, keep heat high and stir often to prevent browning, adding more oil if necessary so dish doesn't dry out. Once meats are nicely browned and veggies translucent, add in frozen veggies. Cover and lower heat for about 10 minutes, to soften the veggies. 

Turn heat back up, uncover the pot, and add the rice. Stir to mix well and saute for 3-5 minutes, until rice is browned. Add water. Add 1 tsp of salt and saffron, if using. Boil for 2-3 minutes then taste and adjust if more salt is needed. Once the dish is gently boiling for a few minutes, adjust heat to medium-high and stir every 5 minutes or so, adjusting heat to cooking speed of rice; you don't want to burn off the liquid before the rice is cooked. The end result of the rice will be like al dente pasta and once it is not crunchy, you can turn off the heat and then cover the dish for 10-15 minutes to let the rice finish cooking.

Serve with lemon wedges on table.