This is my best approximation of how I remember my father making paella. He never wrote down his own recipe-the written version we have is him copying a cookbook version for my friend’s mother.
Chicho’s Paella
Ingredients
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 tsp saffron
- 4 chicken thighs
- 4 small chorizo diced
- 1 pound Shrimp
- 1 pound cod, halibut, or other white fish optional
- 1 or 2 dozen small clams and/or mussels optional
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 4 – 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 roasted red peppers diced or strips
- 3 cups rice
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1 lemon
- 1 cup small peas fresh or frozen
- 5 tbsps parsley chopped
Instructions
- In a small pot, bring the chicken stock with the saffron to a low simmer.
- In the paella pan, brown the chicken in olive oil. Remove to a plate when barely cooked through, and allow to cool before cutting into cubes.
- Add onions and garlic to the paella pan to cook in the chicken fat until translucent.
- Add the pimentos and chorizo to the pan, stir until warmed through, about 1 minute.
- Add the shrimp and cook on both sides until just pink, then use tongs to remove shrimp to a plate.
- Add the rice to the pan and stir well to coat.
- Add most of the parsley; save a bit for garnish.
- Stir in the chicken broth, wine, and juice of half the lemon. Add salt to taste, and simmer about 5 minutes.
- Add peas, chicken, and shrimp, and stir gently to combine. Cook about 5 minutes.
- While there is still plenty of liquid, bury the cubes of fish, clams, and mussels throughout the rice, making sure the shellfish will open facing upwards.
- Simmer roughly 20 min until liquid is absorbed and rice is al dente. Do not stir, but use your spoon as need to lift the rice as needed to redistribute broth.
- Turn off the heat and cover the paella with a dish towel to steam for 5 or 10 min.
- Garnish with remaining parsley and squeeze the rest of the lemon over everything then serve.