Spanish rice dish with saffron, chicken, sausage, shrimp, and mussels.

Ingredients

  • 3-1/2 cups homemade or low-salt chicken broth; more as needed
  • Pinch of saffron (8 to 10 threads) or smokey paprika to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • About 1/4 cup olive oil; more if needed
  • 4 skinless chicken thighs, chopped in half and seasoned with salt and pepper
  • 1 small head garlic (remove excess papery skins, trim the top, and make a shallow cut around its equator to speed cooking), plus 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1-inch wide strips
  • 3 oz. green beans (about 16), trimmed or asparagus
  • 1 small onion, grated on the largest holes of a box grater
  • 1 ripe tomato, halved horizontally and grated on the largest holes of a box grater (discard the skin)
  • 1-1/2 cups medium-grain rice, like arborio
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary
  • 2 lemons, cut in wedges for garnish

Options:

  • Link sausage: andouille, hot spicy links precooked till almost done
  • Crab claws
  • 1/2 lb medium shrimp, uncooked
  • 1/2 lb scallops

Lemon Aioli (if seafood added to paella):

  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp coarse salt
  • 1 tbsp freshly grated lemon zest
  • Pinch of white pepper
  • 3/4 cup olive oil

Steps

  1. In a saucepan, bring the broth to a boil; reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Add about 1/2 cup of the hot broth to the saffron and let the saffron steep for about 15 minutes. Add the saffron-infused liquid back to the broth. Taste; the broth should be well seasoned, so add more salt if necessary. Remove from the heat until ready to add to the rice.
  2. Set a 14-inch paella pan or very large fry pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and the head of garlic; saute until the chicken is golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the partially cooked chicken to a platter. The head of garlic stays in the pan.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium low. In the same pan, saute the red pepper slices slowly until they’re very limp, 10 minutes. When the pepper is done, transfer the pieces to a plate, cover with foil, and set aside.
  4. Slowly saute the green beans or asparagus in the same pan, still on medium low, until the beans/asparagus are soft and slightly wrinkled, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, when the pepper pieces are cool enough to handle, peel off and discard the skin. When the green beans/asparagus are done transfer them to the platter with the chicken.
  5. If there’s more than 1 tbsp of oil in the pan, pour out the excess. Increase the heat to medium and saute the grated onion and sliced garlic until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes.
  6. Add the grated tomato. Season well with salt and saute until the water from the tomato has cooked out and the mixture, called a sofrito, has darkened to a burgundy color and is a very thick puree, 5 to 10 minutes.
  7. About half an hour before you’re ready to eat, bring the broth back to a simmer and set the pan with the sofrito over your largest burner on medium heat. When the sofrito is hot, add the rice, stirring until it’s translucent, 1 to 2 minutes.
  8. Spread out the rice, distribute the green beans evenly, and arrange the chicken in the pan. Increase the heat to medium high and pour in 3 cups of the simmering broth (reserving 1/2 cup).
  9. As the broth comes to a boil, lay the peppers in the pan, starburst-like, and push the head of garlic to the center. Cook until the rice begins to appear above the liquid, 6 to 8 minutes, rotating the pan as necessary to distribute the heat.
  10. Add the sprig of rosemary and reduce the heat to medium low. Add options if using: sausage, shrimp, crab, scallops. Continue to simmer, rotating the pan as necessary, until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is al dente, another 8 to 10 minutes.
  11. Cover the pan with foil and cook gently for another 2 minutes. With the foil still in place, increase the heat to medium high and, turning the pan, cook until the bottom layer of rice starts to caramelize, creating the socarrat, 1 to 2 minutes.
  12. Remove the pan from the heat and let the paella rest, still covered, 5 to 10 minutes.
  13. Remove the foil, and invite people to eat directly from the pan, starting at the perimeter and working toward the center, squeezing lemon over their section if they like or top with a dollop of lemon aioli.
  14. For lemon aioli, combine yolks, lemon juice, garlic, salt, zest, and pepper in a blender. With the blender running, slowly drizzle in olive oil, and blend until an emulsion forms. The aioli may be kept in the refrigerator for up to 1 day in a covered container.