Quick Cuban Style Paella Recipes

QUICK CUBAN-STYLE PAELLA

Steps:

• Trim any visible fat from chicken and set aside. Pour broth into a large wide saucepan and set over medium heat. Stir in onion, garlic, jalapeno, lime juice, tomato sauce, seasonings and salt. Once it comes to a boil reduce heat so mixture just simmers.
• Slice sausages into ½ inch (1 cm) pieces as best you can or remove casings and roll into ½ inch (1 cm) rounds. Add to the broth. Cover and simmer while preparing chicken and veggies.
• Meanwhile cut chicken into small pieces, no more than 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide. Coarsely chop green pepper and tomatoes. Then stir chicken, green pepper and tomatoes including juice into the mixture all at once. Increase heat so it comes to a boil, stir in the rice. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until rice is done as you like, a total of about 45 minutes. To prevent rice from sticking, stir gently every 15 minutes being sure to scrape the bottom of the pan. Stir in coriander and serve sprinkled with additional coriander if you like.

QUICK AND EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• Cook and stir reserved shrimp shells and 2 teaspoons olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat until shells are pink and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir saffron into shells; add chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and cook until broth is a rusty brown and fragrant, about 20 minutes.
• Strain saffron broth through a fine-mesh sieve; measure out 2 cups of broth, pour into a small saucepan, and place over low heat to keep broth hot.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Cook chorizo slices in hot oil until browned, about 2 minutes per side. Add onion to sausage; cook and stir until soft and slightly translucent, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low.
• Stir garlic into chorizo mixture; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice to skillet and stir to coat rice completely in oil; stir in peas.
• Pat rice mixture evenly into the bottom of the skillet. Arrange shrimp in a single layer over the top of the rice. Lay pepper strips around and in between shrimp; season with salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper.
• Increase heat to high. When rice begins to sizzle in the skillet, pour reserved 2 cups hot saffron broth over the shrimp; gently shake the skillet to distribute liquid.
• Bake rice mixture in the preheated oven until rice is almost tender and still a bit wet, about 20 minutes.
• Place skillet over medium-high and cook until rice is tender, liquid is absorbed, and rice caramelizes and crusts slightly on the bottom of the skillet, 3 to 5 minutes.

CUBAN-STYLE PAELLA: PAELLA CUBANA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Heat olive oil in a large pan. Saute the ham and chorizo sausage. Remove from pan and reserve.*
• Add onions, red pepper, and garlic to pan and saute until wilted but not overcooked.
• Add chicken pieces and saute for about 15 minutes until brown, but not fully cooked. Remove and reserve.
• In a large pot combine the rice, broth, wine, and mussels. Add salt for flavor and Bijol for color. Stir. Turn up heat, bring to boil and cover. Add chicken, ham and chorizo. Cover and simmer on the stove for 20 to 30 minutes, until the rice is cooked and fluffy. (You may have to add a little more chicken broth if the mixture gets too dry).
• Saute shrimp, clams, and lobster tails separately in the oil. Remove and keep covered and warm.**
• At the last minute, fold the seafood into the rice mixture. Transfer to a flat paella pan suitable for serving. Top with peas and red peppers. Place in oven for about 5 minutes to heat through. Take care not to overcook! Serve garnished with mussels, parsley and lobster shells.

QUICK PAELLA

Steps:

• In a straight-sided, 10-inch pan, heat the olive oil over a medium flame. Add the onions, peppers and garlic and cook until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the white wine and tomato puree and reduce the liquid by two-thirds, about 8 minutes.
• Add the smoked paprika and saffron, along with the bay leaf. Fold in the rice and make a bed for the seafood to sit on. Add the mussels, clams and shrimp and season again. Cover the pan, turn the heat to high and cook until the shellfish is finished and the bottom of the pan has started to caramelize the rice, about 5 minutes. This is a challenging step and is based on timing.
• Finish the paella with fresh parsley, and serve with lemon wedges on the side.

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.

QUICK PAELLA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until just smoking, then sauté garlic and frozen onions and peppers, stirring, until garlic and onions are golden, about 2 minutes. Add kielbasa and cook, stirring, until kielbasa is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add rice, wine, broth, saffron, and shrimp and cook, covered and undisturbed, over high heat until most of liquid is absorbed and shrimp are cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in cockles, peas, and olives and cook, covered, until cockles open wide, 2 to 4 minutes. (Discard any cockles that remain unopened after 4 minutes.) Remove from heat and let stand, covered, until all liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes.