Did you know that half the world population subsists on a diet of rice?  There are more than 40,000 varieties growing around the world. About 90% of rice on the world market is grown in Asian countries. Spain’s growing region is in the south where water is plentiful. The three main types of Spanish rice are Valencia, Calasparra and Bomba, the most prized. Paella, which is essentially a rice dish, with a few accompaniments, has become the national dish of Spain.Variations abound, with rabbit, chicken, sausage, all vegetables, or along the coast it’s all about the seafood.

My version is of course all my favorites and not particularly authentic. In fact, I really don’t like short-grained rice all that much. So I used aged basmati, an Indian rice. It doesn’t have the sticky quality that true paella rice has. I’m sure this would never pass muster with a Spaniard.  I have seen recipes using short pasta. We Americans just cannot leave well enough alone…..sorry….

I remember a customer years ago going on and on about the long list of ingredients they had to hunt down for this celebration dish. It is a dish to share, often eaten right out of the big round cooking pan with a glass of Sangria. You can embellish as much as you want with many kinds of seafood or vegetables. I chose chorizo sausage, chicken and shrimp. These came together quickly and the final dish was quite tasty. Just the thing for a busy family.

Paella pans are fun to have but not totally necessary. Fry pans work just as well for our quick version. I would definitely recommend using saffron. It’s a bit pricy, but the flavor is not easily substitued. You can get the color with food coloring or turmeric, but it’s really not the same. Cooking on a wood fire would be even more tasty, more traditional, and that’s the plan when it gets a bit warmer.

Babies cannot have the spicy chorizo or shrimp, but it would be easy to make a little “baby paella” in a small pan simultaneously of chicken, rice and peas with a little chicken stock.

Kids will love picking out all their favorite ingredients and enjoy the communal sharing of the dish.

Print Recipe Here

Paella
Serves 4
Prep time: 45 minutes

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 chorizo links, diced into 1/2” pieces
1 large chicken breast cut into 1-inch chunks
3/4 cup rice (basmati or Valencia)
1 1/2 cups chicken stock, or more as needed
1 large pinch saffron
1/2 teaspoon sweet smoked Spanish paprika
1 cup sugar snap peas, sliced in half lengthwise, about 3 oz.
1/2 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 lemon, cut into 4 wedges

In a paella pan or frypan heat the oil. Add the onion and bell peppers. Sauté until softened and starting to brown.  Add  the chorizo and chicken. Sauté until starting to brown. Add the rice and stir until the rice is coated with the oil.  Add the stock, saffron and paprika.  Cover and cook, stirring once or twice until the rice is just tender—about 15 minutes.  Add the peas and shrimp. Push down into the rice. Cover and cook 5 more minutes, until the shrimp is opaque.  Serve, garnished with parsley and lemon wedges on the side.

Serves 4