A great family meal, it needs a large paella pan.
- 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
- 8 pieces chicken on bone
- 450 g spicy chorizo sausage
- 600 g squid cut into rings
- 200 g uncooked prawns in shell
- 500 g mussels
- 1 litre white wine
- chicken stock (concentrated liquid preferred)
- 500 g tomatoes
- 500 g paella rice
- 2 red peppers
- 4 tablespoons sun dried tomato paste
- peas (frozen)
- olives; to taste
- 2 lemons
- 2 onions large
- 8 garlic cloves
- ginger root; to taste chopped fine
- fresh thyme; large handful
- fresh rosemary; stem
- 4 fresh bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons saffron
- 1 teaspoons cumin seeds
- fresh parsley; large handful
- smoked sea salt (great majorcan condiment)
- fresh ground pepper
- olive oil; as required
- water; as required
- Carbohydrate 18.0055514331167 g
- Cholesterol 192.25 mg
- Fat 3.04382349738913 g
- Fiber 3.82642837381817 g
- Protein 21.5321680969181 g
- Saturated Fat 0.636147817492783 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (445g)
- Sodium 226.603480614285 mg
- Sugar 14.1791230592985 g
- Trans Fat 0.938632731397684 g
- Calories 182 calories
Step-by-step
- Pan fry the chicken until brown and cooked in paella pan. Remove chicken and keep warm.
- Add onions, red peppers, garlic, ginger root and chorizo and fry. Once softened (10 min) add tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, saffron, cumin, paprika, pepper and some salt. After a further 5 min add rice and cook for 2-3 mins.
- Important add half the wine and chicken stock into pan - this is the flavour the rice will pick up. Simmer so that it doesn't stick in the middle. Add tomato paste. Keep an eye on volume of liquid and keep adding when wine finished start adding water until rice ready. Keep liquid present and add peas, squid and mussels. Finally add prawns and cook until ready and liquid is reduced but not dry. Add the lemon as juice and parsley at the end.
Wide-format cooking requires dedicated hardware. A standard 12-inch skillet will crowd the surface area, trapping moisture and steaming the grains instead of frying them. Proper execution demands a shallow, wide carbon steel or enameled paella pan that spans multiple burners, allowing heat to distribute evenly across the base. Without this specific vessel, achieving the signature textural contrast between tender grains and the toasted bottom crust, known as the socarrat, remains virtually impossible.
Managing the Liquid Ratio
Rice absorption dictates the success of this preparation. Unlike risotto, paella must not be stirred continuously; agitation releases excess starch and creates a heavy porridge. Introduce the initial liquid combination of white wine and chicken stock all at once after toasting the rice grains in the aromatic oil. Maintain a medium flame so the liquid simmers actively without boiling over the shallow rim. Monitor the volume closely, replenishing with water only when the surface level drops below the top of the rice bed. Add proteins sequentially based on density. Dense squid rings and shelled mussels require longer cooking windows than delicate prawns, which turn rubbery if subjected to sustained high heat. Incorporate frozen peas toward the final five minutes to retain their bright pigmentation and crisp bite. Finish the pan off heat, allowing the starches to settle for exactly ten minutes before serving.
- Stirring the rice after the liquid has absorbed will break the grains and ruin the texture.
- Overcrowding the pan prevents proper evaporation, leading to soggy results.
- Adding seafood too early results in tough, overcooked protein.
