Chicken and Chorizo Paella

Servings: 4

Cooking paella is a fun and interactive experience. You can always modify the ingredients to make your paella more seasonal and since it is cooked entirely in one vessel, paella is the original one-pot meal!

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup yellow onion, finely diced
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 cup crushed tomatoes or fresh tomatoes grated on a box grater
• 1/2 teaspoon pimentón
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2), cut into 1 -inch pieces
• 1 generous pinch saffron
• 2 teaspoons pimentón
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 ounces Spanish-style chorizo, diced into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 cups Spanish paella rice
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/3 cup fresh shelled or frozen peas, thawed
• 2 lemons, cut into wedges

Instructions

1. To prepare sofrito: To a paella pan or large skillet set over medium-high heat, add 3 tablespoons of oil. When oil is shimmering, add onions, stirring frequently until tender and lightly caramelized, 5 to 8 minutes. Add red pepper and garlic and cook until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, pimentón, salt and bay. Reduce heat to medium and stir frequently until sauce is thick and turns a deep brick red color, about 10 minutes.
2. To a large saucepan set over medium-high heat, add chicken broth; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cover to keep broth hot.
3. To prepare paella: To paella pan or large skillet, push sofrito to side and add 2 tablespoons of oil. When oil is shimmering, add chicken and sauté until browned, about 5 minutes. Make another space in center of paella pan; add spices and toast for 30 seconds. Add chorizo and stir to combine with sofrito, chicken and spices. Ladle 3 cups of hot broth into pan and stir in rice and salt, shaking pan to evenly distribute rice grains. Increase heat to medium-high and boil for 5 to 7 minutes, or until rice just starts to break surface of broth. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer gently, undisturbed, for 10 minutes. During the process, if rice looks dry and undercooked, drizzle in additional chicken broth.
4. Remove lid and increase heat to medium-high; cook for about 2 minutes until bottom layer of rice starts to crackle and caramelize, creating the socarrat. At this point, you will need to closely monitor your paella and frequently move your pan around burner to evenly distribute heat.
5. With a spoon, gently scrape a small portion of rice from bottom, peeking to make sure rice is sticking and caramelizing but not burning (the rice should smell toasty, not burnt). If rice is browned and caramelized on bottom of the pan and rice grains are al dente (chewy but slightly resistant texture), remove from heat; sprinkle peas over rice and cover pan, letting paella rest for 10 minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve family-style straight from pan.

Nutrition (per serving)

Glycemic Load

Recipe Improvement Suggestions

Consider these ingredient substitutions for healthier alternatives.

Lower Glycemic Load

These suggestions are general guidelines. Results may vary. For medical dietary needs, consult a healthcare provider.

Recipe extracted and analyzed with Glyc