Maria's Classic Paella

I have loved paella since the first time I tried it while traveling through Spain at 17. Though I could never make it as great as my friend's mom in Madrid, this recipe comes so close! It's a favorite at our house for Sunday dinner and tastes all the better when made in a traditional paella pan (brought back in a suitcase, no less!). I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

• Preparation Time: 25 mins
• Cooking Time: 55 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins
• Calories: 814 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped onion
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• ¾ cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 4 chicken thighs
• 20 saffron threads, crushed
• 4 links chorizo de bilbao (spicy Spanish semi-cured sausage)
• 2 cups Spanish paella rice
• 2 teaspoons Spanish sweet paprika
• ½ cup grated peeled roma (plum) tomatoes
• 8 clams in shell, scrubbed, or more to taste
• 8 mussels, cleaned and debearded, or more to taste
• 8 prawns, peeled and deveined (leave tails)
• 3 red bell peppers, cut into strips
• 10 ounces peas
• ½ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 8 wedges lemon
• 1 baguette, sliced

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring stock to a simmer in a stockpot over medium-low heat. Stir crushed saffron into the simmering stock.

Step 2

Heat olive oil in a paella pan over medium heat. Fry chicken thighs in hot oil until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion is translucent, 5 to 7 minutes more. Arrange the chorizo into the pan around the chicken thighs and cook until warmed, 3 to 5 minutes per side.

Step 3

Pour rice into the paella pan and stir to coat with oil; season with sweet paprika. Stir grated tomato into the rice and cook until the tomato is warmed, 2 to 3 minutes.

Step 4

Pour chicken stock into the paella pan and bring to a boil while scraping any browned bits of food off the bottom of the pan with a flat-edged wooden spoon. Smooth surface of rice with the wooden spoon in an even layer so it cooks evenly.

Step 5

Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook, without stirring, until the rice has softened but has yet to completely absorb the stock, 15 to 30 minutes.

Step 6

Place clams and mussels, hinged-side down, into the rice; continue simmering until the mussels and clams open, 5 to 7 minutes.

Step 7

Nestle prawns into the rice; add bell pepper and peas. Continue cooking until the bottom of the rice is browned and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool 5 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle parsley over the paella, and garnish with lemon wedges. Serve with baguette slices.