Chicken-Shellfish Paella
Chicken-Shellfish Paella, the title that alone wins my heart, especially around summer time when is when I frequently make them. Paellas are such a simple comfort food to make and can have an array of meats, poultry, and/or seafood. It doesn’t have to have seafood, however, I may judge you on that. Just kidding! I’v tried paellas of all kinds since Columbia Restaurant, that of with all meat, vegetarian, and a wide array of different seafood paellas. Paellas with chorizo, or other such sausages, are also quite delectable. This particular paella recipe was found in the Rustic Spanish cookbook.
Colubmia Restaurant
With certainty, I can tell you the first time in my life that I tried chicken-shellfish paella. It was 2000 and I had the splendor of trying the very first paella at Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City, Tampa. It is the Paella Espanola, and is a splendid mix of yellow rice and an array of seafood that is as close as it comes to heaven. It undoubtedly seems to grow more divine with each bite. Since that day, I’ve returned back many times to order the same splendidly consistent paella. As luck would have it, I had the pleasure of going back to Columbia Restaurant with my family this past weekend. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that even after three years of not having had it, it was still as I have had it every time. And of course I came home to only make a large paella myself, the day after our Tampa trip. The pan had to have weighed well over 25 pounds because I couldn’t left it! Good thing for good friends that are buff and strong and can lift heavy paella pans with ease, thanks Samantha!
My Sister’s Paellas
The other place I’d often have the pleasure of indulging in paella was at my sister’s house when she lived in Florida. She started making them for dinners here and there until she started making them for larger parties in a 80 inch pan, enough to feed 50+ people. It would be chock-full of the traditional seafood paella staples, including that of fat and juicy lobster tails as well. are you salivating yet? I know I am.
Chicken-Shellfish Paella
Ingredients
1/4 tsp saffron threads
1 1/2 lb chicken legs and thighs
fine sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2/3 cup tomate frito (or tomato puree)
1/2 cup dr white wine
5 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon pimenton
2 cups short grain Spanish rice (Valenciana or Calasparra)
12 live clams, scrubbed,
12 live mussels, scrubbed and debearded
1/2 pound baby octopus
1/2 pound large scallops
1/2 pound large shrimp, deveined and tails off
1/2 cup roasted red bell pepper strips
1/2 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas
3 lemons, quartered
Prepare
1.In a small, dy frying pan, toast the saffron threads over medium heat, stirring constantly or shaking the pan, until fragrant and a shade darker, about 1 minute. Pour threads into a bowl and, when cool, crumble with your fingertips. Set aside.
2. Halve the chicken pieces across the bone with poultry shears. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper. In a 14 inch paella pan or 12 inch frying pan with sides 2 inches high, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Working in batches without crowding, add the chicken and cook, turning as needed, until nicely browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato frito/tomato paste and cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated, 3-5 minutes. Add the wine, stock, pimenton, and saffron, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
4. Sprinkle the rice evenly over the bottom of the pan, then arrange the chicken, scallops, and octopus over the rice, submerging them in the liquid. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil, then cook for 10 minutes.
5. Arrange the clams, mussels, and shrimp over the rice, discarding any clams or mussels that do not close to the touch. Push the seafood down into the liquid. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the clams and mussels have opened, the shrimp are pink, and the liquid has been absorbed, 10-12 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, push aside the rice to see if there is a nice brown crust on the bottom of the pan. If one hasn’t formed yet cook for a few minutes longer, adjusting the heat if necessary to brown, but not burn, the rice.
6. Remove from the heat. Arrange the bell pepper strips and peas over the rice, cover with aluminum foil, and let stand for 10 minutes. Serve at once directly from the pan, with the lemon wedges for diners to squeeze over.
- Ingredients
- 1/4 tsp saffron threads
- 1 1/2 lb chicken legs and thighs
- fine sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2/3 cup tomate frito (or tomato puree)
- 1/2 cup dr white wine
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon pimenton
- 2 cups short grain Spanish rice (Valenciana or Calasparra)
- 12 live clams, scrubbed,
- 12 live mussels, scrubbed and debearded
- 1/2 pound baby octopus
- 1/2 pound large scallops
- 1/2 pound large shrimp, deveined and tails off
- 1/2 cup roasted red bell pepper strips
- 1/2 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas
- 3 lemons, quartered
- In a small, dy frying pan, toast the saffron threads over medium heat, stirring constantly or shaking the pan, until fragrant and a shade darker, about 1 minute. Pour threads into a bowl and, when cool, crumble with your fingertips. Set aside.
- Halve the chicken pieces across the bone with poultry shears. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper. In a 14 inch paella pan or 12 inch frying pan with sides 2 inches high, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Working in batches without crowding, add the chicken and cook, turning as needed, until nicely browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Add the onion and garlic to the pan and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato frito/tomato paste and cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated, 3-5 minutes. Add the wine, stock, pimenton, and saffron, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
- Sprinkle the rice evenly over the bottom of the pan, then arrange the chicken, scallops, and octopus over the rice, submerging them in the liquid. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil, then cook for 10 minutes.
- Arrange the clams, mussels, and shrimp over the rice, discarding any clams or mussels that do not close to the touch. Push the seafood down into the liquid. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the clams and mussels have opened, the shrimp are pink, and the liquid has been absorbed, 10-12 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, push aside the rice to see if there is a nice brown crust on the bottom of the pan. If one hasn't formed yet cook for a few minutes longer, adjusting the heat if necessary to brown, but not burn, the rice.
- Remove from the heat. Arrange the bell pepper strips and peas over the rice, cover with aluminum foil, and let stand for 10 minutes. Serve at once directly from the pan, with the lemon wedges for diners to squeeze over.
