Spanish Paella with Chicken & Shrimp

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This was one of the first major dishes that I learned how to make at a young age (20) and I’ve had years to improve it and build upon it.  Today it is one of my favorite dishes to prepare and eat, and it is my number one top favorite rice dish.  There is no other rice dish that I like better.  Jambalaya is a close second.

You might ask how I was introduced to the idea of Paella being an American and all.  Well, many people don’t know this, but I lived in Spain for almost two years.  I was introduced to a lot of very tasty dishes out there.  I ate at many family’s homes and ate a lot of home cooked meals.  It was such an amazing experience and after a year of living there, I would ask if I could help with the cooking.  Most hosts welcomed the help and I found myself chopping onion, bell pepper, or in one instance placing the shrimp in the boiling paella just at the right time so it wouldn’t overcook.

I would ask the hosts about their methods with cooking paella.  Although each family had their own unique touch to the dish, there were a few points everyone had in common.  Make sure the liquid has flavor and make sure to maintain the proper liquid level while the paella is cooking.  Too little water will result in uncooked rice, too much water will result in overcooked mushy rice.  Also, if you have to add water, make sure to add additional salt as needed to maintain the flavor.  Finally, make sure to always use bone-in chicken, do not use boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, your paella will taste like water.

One key difference between cooking paella in the USA versus cooking it in Spain is the quality of the chicken.  In Spain and most European countries, the chickens are fed better because they are more free roaming and eat plants, grass, you know, their natural diet.  This results in a much higher quality in chicken meat and a much stronger flavor.  So when you cook Paella in Spanish, you can use water to cook the paella and plenty of flavor comes off the chicken and pretty much turns the water into a rich broth.  Here in the USA our chickens are grain fed, and this results in bigger chickens, but flavor is minimal, so for best results, you cook paella in chicken broth to get the same result.

This recipe is a tasty one, but it’s not an easy one, at least not at first.  My first five or six paellas turned out bland and tasteless, but from there I continued to learn from my mistakes and improve.  Now my paella dishes are loved by family members and friends alike.  You can arrive there too after some practice.  Enjoy!

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Ingredients

• 4 to 5 bone-in chicken thighs, for larger paellas a chopped whole chicken is ideal
• 1 medium onion or 3/4 of large onion diced
• 3 to 4 garlic cloves chopped in large pieces
• Julienne one small bell pepper or 1/2 large pepper
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil for pan
• .7 grams of saffron (best price found at Trader Joes or Amazon)
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce
• 1 1/2 cups short grain rice or arborio rice
• 4 cups chicken broth or stock
• 10 to 15 raw shrimp
• Salt to taste

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Instructions​

1. Heat a stainless steel pan or paella pan(do NOT use non-stick) to medium heat.  Add 1/4 cup of olive oil.  Add chicken thighs skin down in the hot oil for 5 minutes.
2. Flip over chicken and fry another 5 minutes
3. Add onions and saute 5 minutes,
4. Add dash of salt
5. Add garlic pieces saute 3 minutes
6. Add bell pepper and saute 3 minutes
7. remove chicken and set aside
8. Add saffron strands and mix around pan
9. Add tomato sauce and mix around pan
10. Add rice, spread around pan and cook a couple minutes
11. Add chicken broth and mix items around
12. Chop chicken into pieces and pull away from bone
13. Re-add chicken and bones back to the pan, spread chicken around evenly
14. Add generous amount of salt to broth until desired flavor is reached
15. Add shrimp about 10 minutes before paella is done cooking, cook each side for 5 minutes
16. Let paella and broth continue to boil until most liquid is evaporated.  Test rice for doneness, if still slightly crunchy, add additional broth as needed to continue cooking.  Perform another taste test and add additional salt as needed to maintain flavor.
17. Once rice is cooked thoroughly, you’re paella is finished!  Enjoy!