Paella Mista Recipes

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons olive oil, paprika, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir in chicken pieces to coat. Cover, and refrigerate.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over medium heat. Stir in garlic, red pepper flakes, and rice. Cook, stirring, to coat rice with oil, about 3 minutes. Stir in saffron threads, bay leaf, parsley, chicken stock, and lemon zest. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a separate skillet over medium heat. Stir in marinated chicken and onion; cook 5 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and sausage; cook 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp; cook, turning the shrimp, until both sides are pink.
• Spread rice mixture onto a serving tray. Top with meat and seafood mixture.

PAELLA MIXTA

Steps:

• Make the paella on the stovetop in a large skillet or paella pan without a lid. In the pan, cook the chicken in 1/4 cup of olive oil until cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside.
• In the same pan using the chicken fat and 1/4 cup of olive oil, saute 1/2 onion until soft. Add 1 tablespoon garlic. Add the rice and stir until each grain is coated with oil. Add the saffron.
• Combine the clam juice with chicken stock in separate container to make cooking liquid. Add 3 cups of the cooking liquid to the rice and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 5 to 7 minutes. Add salt and pepper. Then add bell pepper and peas. Stir.
• Saute the other 1/2 of the onion until tender. Add 1 tablespoon of cumin, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 1 cup of diced tomatoes and 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Simmer for about 7 minutes. Add the diced cucumber and stir. Remove from the heat, puree in food processor. This will give you the paella sauce.
• Saute clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops and 1 teaspoon of garlic in separate pan with 2 tablespoons of oil for approximately 7 minutes (until the shrimp looks pink), add 1/2 paella sauce.
• Add the rice to seafood mixture and stir.
• Add sliced chorizo, the cooked chicken drummies and arrange clams on top. Add more liquid, if needed.

THE ULTIMATE PAELLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F (190 degrees C/gas 5.) Remove the end bits of bone from the chicken legs, then cut them in half. Cut the chicken breasts in half. Coat all the chicken pieces with flour and salt and pepper. Put some oil in a hot large flat pan and brown the chicken legs and thighs, skin side down, turning them to brown them all over. Transfer them to a small roasting tray and continue to cook in the preheated oven for 30 minutes
• Add the chicken fillets to the pan and let them brown, then add the chorizo slices. Lay the slices of pancetta over the top. Once crisp, turn the heat down, add the onion and garlic to the pan, and allow to soften. Pour the infused saffron and some of the stock into the pan, and add the smoked paprika and rice, stirring continuously.
• Finely chop the parsley stalks and add to the pan. When the rice is almost cooked, add the peas, mussels, prawns and squid, adding more stock if necessary. Cover the pan with foil. When the chicken is cooked, add it to the pan, then add a large handful of chopped parsley leaves. Check the seasoning. Cut the lemon into wedges, place around the edge of the pan, and serve.

PAELLA MASTER RECIPE

Steps:

• Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add about 1/2 pound of meat (or a combination of meats), sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until nicely browned. Add one chopped onion and some minced bell pepper at the same time if you like and cook until soft. (If you want a meatless paella, skip right to the onion.)
• Add 2 cups rice and (if you have it) a pinch of saffron and cook, stirring, until shiny. Add 3 1/2 cups of your liquid of choice, heated, and stir until just combined, then stir in seafood (or lay it on top of the rice). Again, skip the seafood if you want vegetarian paella.
• Cook over medium-high heat, undisturbed. If the pan is too big for your burner, move it around a little; but after that initial stirring, leave it alone. When the mixture starts to dry, begin tasting the rice; if the liquid amount seems O.K., keep going. If the rice seems quite tough, add another 1/2 cup or so of liquid. And if you can smell the bottom starting to burn, lower the heat a bit. About halfway through the cooking (about 10 minutes), add any vegetables, adjust seasonings and stir gently, just once.
• The rice is done when tender and still a bit moist; if the mixture has stuck to the bottom of the pan, congratulations: you have socarrat, a characteristic of good paella. This should be served in the pan, in the middle of the table, and dinner guests - up to six - should fight over it.

PAELLA IN THE OVEN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 8. Put the chopped tomatoes (including their juice), stock, paprika and saffron in a large heatproof jug or bowl and microwave for about 5 mins on high until steaming hot.
• Tip the onion and garlic into a generous roasting tin or ovenproof dish, drizzle over the oil and mix to coat. Cook in the oven for 20 mins until beginning to brown.
• Stir in the rice, chicken, chorizo and hot stock mixture, season well and return to the oven for 20 mins (don't cover).
• Stir in the peeled prawns and peas, dot any shell-on prawns on top, and return to the oven for 5-10 mins until the rice, chicken and prawns are cooked through. If serving with lemon, a nice touch is to pop the lemon slices on top of the paella for the last 5 mins of cooking, to make them hot and juicy. Check the seasoning and serve at once.

PAELLA MIXTA

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Combine the tomatoes, stock, paprika and saffron in a large heatproof jug, then microwave for 5 mins on high, or until steaming hot. Or, heat in a pan on the hob.
• Put the onion and garlic in a large ovenproof frying pan or roasting tin, drizzle over the olive oil and stir to coat. Roast for 20 mins, or until the veg is starting to brown.
• Stir in the rice, chicken, chorizo and hot stock mix. Season and bake for 20 mins (don't cover the pan).
• Gently stir in the peas, dot over the prawns and press the mussels in, hinged-side down, so they're standing up. Arrange the lemon wedges around the edge, if using. Bake for 5-10 mins more until the rice, chicken and prawns are cooked, and the mussels have opened (discard any that stay shut). Check for seasoning, and serve.