We've teamed up with Meg from A Recipe Blog who has created this amazing, colourful and delish Chicken, Chorizo + Seafood Paella.
Meg is a passionate cook, recipe creator, wine lover and bargain hunter. As a trained cook with a Certificate III in Commercial Cookery and a Masters in Gastronomy her advantage is being able to cook cost effectively and efficiently, while ensuring the food is super tasty.
A word from Meg about her Chicken, Chorizo + Seafood Paella
Nothing gets the party started quite like a big pan of Paella! The flavours are big and bold and its the perfect dish to share.
My Chicken, Chorizo + Seafood Paella is a dish that is so easy to make, but always ensures loads of amazed dinners and lots of compliments.
Paella is the man’s Sunday dish – the Spanish version of an Aussie BBQ.
In typically male fashion, once all the ingredients are in the pan, that’s it! It;s rarely stirred, in fact the sign of a good paella is a bit of crust on the bottom, so fear not if you have a few charred bits on the bottom, they even taste great and add a bit of texture.
Paella is such a fun dish to make for a dinner party – so grab a few mates, make a jug of sangria, pop some Gypsy King on and its Paella time baby!
What's in her Chicken, chorizo + Seafood Paella
As the name says my paella is a mix of chicken, chorizo and seafood.
I love combining all these different proteins as the flavours work so well together infusing into the rice and stock creating the most amazing flavour.
Choosing the right chorizo is really important. Try to get fresh pork chorizos from your butcher for the best flavour and texture. Typically, these sausages are flavoured with garlic and paprika which imparts a sweet and smoky flavour that is totally characteristic of these Spanish sausages.
If you can’t get your hands on fresh chorizo then the next best option is the cured chorizo that is air dried like salami and can be eaten raw, simply sliced. This will alter the texture of the dish, but you should still be able to get the same flavours.
I like to use chicken thighs as breasts tend to dry out and as for the seafood often opt for a mix of squid tubes, mussels and prawns.
Simply shell and devein your prawns, leaving the tails on, and clean your squid tubes, slice them open, score and then dice them up, which causes them to curl up beautifully when cooked.
The mussels just require a scrub if there are any beards or dirt on them, and will steam open when place into the dish.
For the rice – look for Calasparra Rice a unique short grain rice grown in the mountains of the Spanish province of Murcia.
Calasparra rice matures for 30% longer developing it’s remarkable flavour and texture. This rice absorbs 3 times its weight in stock, delivering the depth of flavour.
Sweet or spicy Spanish smoked paprika makes this dish. There is no salt, pepper or any other seasoning that goes into this recipe. The characteristic pimento is made from handpicked pepper that are smoked over smouldering oak wood fires.
Produced for over 135 years by Pimenton El Angel in the Estremadura region of Spain there is no substituting the unique and amazing aromatic and smoky flavour.
Tools of the Trade
A traditional paella pan is a great investment if you plan to make paella even twice a year. It is such a unique piece of cooking equipment, with a thin base that ensures the food cooks through quick.
Look for an enamel coated black pan as I find they are the best for easy maintenance. Most of them are oven safe and suitable for gas and electric stove tops, as well as BBQ’s.
Depending on your how strong your flame is if gas, its best to use a diffuser to ensure the heat is evenly distributed across the circumference of the large based pan.
If you don’t have a paella pan, a medium to large sauté pan or cast-iron pan could be used in its place. Don’t opt for non-stick in this case.
Serving Suggestions
As so many dishes, paella is a dish that is best served hot from the pan.
Ideally, pop the pan in the middle of the table and let everyone help themselves. It is a real sharing dish and best for people to get involved picking and choosing what bits they would like.
Its also a great dish to have on the go at a party while you kick things off with some Spanish entrees like white anchovies and stuffed olives or Patatas Bravas.
The perfect wine for this dish is a Tempranillo of course, Ole!
Ingredients - Serves 8
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 finely diced Brown Onion
1 and 1/2 tbsp Sweet Smoked Paprika
400 g tin Crushed Tomatoes
1 and 1/2 cups Calaspara Rice
300 g Chorizo
300 g Chicken Thigh
2 Tubes Squid
2 cups Fish Stock
1 cup blanched Peas
12 Mussels
12 Prawns
1 cut into long strips Red Capsicum
How to make Meg's Chicken, Chorizo + Seafood Paella
Step 1
Heat a large heavy-based paella pan over medium heat.
Add onion and garlic, cook stirring a couple minutes or until soft.
Step 2
Sprinkle over the smoked paprika and combine well.
Add in the tinned tomatoes and stir through.
Step 3
Now time for the rice. Add it in and stir it through.
Remove the chorizo from the sausage casing and break it up into chunks using your fingers.
Add it straight into the pan.
Step 4
Add the diced chicken to the pan distributing it evenly.
Stir the chicken through evenly.
Step 5
Open up the squid tubes by slicing it open.
Score the inside of the tube with a sharp knife with a criss-cross pattern.
Start by scoring lines vertically, then turn the squid and cut them across.
Add the squid to the pan also and combine.
Step 6
Finally add the stock to the pan, pouring it over evenly.
Using a wooden spoon make sure it covers all the rice and protein.
Step 7
Stir it through well at this stage and then leave it to simmer.
Sprinkle over the blanched frozen peas and stir through to distribute them evenly.
Step 8
Allow the paella to cook for a further 5 minutes, then place the mussels along the edge of the pan.
You want to ensure the mussels are placed with the part of the shell that opens on the top so it can fully open as it cooks.
Step 9
Allow the paella to cook for a further 5 minutes before adding the prawns in between the mussels.
The paella will need about 15 minutes or so for the mussels to open.
Step 10
If you find they aren’t opening up, either place a lid on if you have one that is large enough, or cover with tin foil and allow it to steam for up to 10 minutes.
Once the mussels have opened and the prawns are pink the paella is ready to serve and enjoy!
If you want to taste the real and authentic flavour of Spain, give this recipe a try. You won't be disappointed!!!
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