The Impatient Chef Recipe - Paella!

Summer is here and the time is right for...

Paella!

The way to know when summer has arrived in my household is when the Paella pan comes out of hiding.

Paella comes from Spain, and has been taking hold in the US for the last decade, or so.  It seriously tries The Impatient Chef's patience, but the finished product is worth it.  This recipe is an amalgamation of a few different versions with some additions (shrimp and chorizo) of my own that turned out to not actually be original.  Oh well.  For me, they are indispensable.  

Ingredients:

• 1 pound tomatoes, or a 16 oz can diced tomatoes 
• 9 cups chicken broth 
• 3 cups Bomba, Paella or Arborio rice.  Any of these would work.  
• 20 threads saffron 
• 2 sprigs rosemary.  Remove the leaves from the stems
• 3 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on, chicken thighs
• 1 pound ground pork chorizo sausage (optional, but why would you not use it?) 
• 1 pound medium to large shrimp (optional, but… well… it’s shrimp!) 
• 1/2 pound fresh green beans, ends cut off, and cut into 1" pieces
• 2 cups chopped red bell pepper 
• 7 cloves garlic, minced 

Equipment: Chimney starter, paper, and about 4 pounds natural lump charcoal, 15-inch carbon steel paella pan, kettle grill.  

Directions:

1. Start the grill:  Crumble some paper (I use Visa receipts because they can't be recycled), and put it into the bottom of a charcoal chimney starter.  Fill the chimney with half of the charcoal and light the paper.  
2. When the charcoal is looking ashy, pour it onto the bottom grate of the grill and spread it out.  Add the remaining charcoal, and spread it evenly.  Add the cooking grate to the grill, but don't put the Paella pan onto it yet.  
3. You need to give the coals a little time to settle down before cooking, so its important to start the coals first.  You can start the prep while they are in the chimney, but make sure you give them some time.  My most recent Paella suffered from forgetting to do this.  I had the Fires of Hell under the pan when I started, and it it was difficult to get everything done without burning.  I lost about a third of the batch to over-charring.  There is supposed to be a layer of "socarrat", or lightly-charred rice, on the bottom of the pan.  There is not supposed to be a layer of creosote.  
4. Start your prep:  If you use fresh tomatoes, just dice them.  I have always done well with using canned, diced tomatoes. You can also use ground tomatoes as well.  Do all of the chopping and cutting mentioned in the ingredients list.  
   
   
   
5. Season the chicken with 2 teaspoons of salt.
6. Warm the chicken broth in a saucepan over medium heat until it reaches 200 degrees F.  Put on the lid, and turn the burner to low, or just remove it from the stove.  
7. In a mixing bowl, add the rice, saffron, rosemary, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and paprika.  mix it with your hands for a few seconds.  
8. Put your Paella pan onto the grill.  Let it heat for a few seconds.  
9. Add the olive oil to the pan (remember, no Fires of Hell). 
10. If you are using chorizo and shrimp, cook this first for 4 minutes.  If the shrimp is raw, add it to the chorizo after 3 minutes.  Remove both to a bowl for later, leaving the spicy oils in the pan.  If the shrimp is precooked, add it when you add back the chorizo in a few steps.  
11. place the chicken into the pan, and fry until golden brown on both sides.  It should take about 5 to 6 minutes per side.  
    
    
    
12. Remove the chicken from the pan, and set aside.  Add the green beans, and red bell pepper to the center of the pan and cook until they begin to soften and darken in color, approximately 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the garlic and stir for an additional minute.  
13. Add the tomatoes, and cook until most of the liquid is gone.  This is usually just a few minutes.   
14. Add the rice mixture to the center of the pan and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute.  
15. Add back the cooked shrimp and chorizo at this point, and spread the rice mixture evenly throughout the pan.  
16. Place the chicken pieces on top of the rice, and press down lightly to nestle them into the rice.  They should not touch the bottom, though.  
17. Add 4 cups of the warm chicken broth, and make sure that the rice mixture is still evenly distributed.  The rice should be completely submerged in the liquid.  You can press it under the liquid with a spatula or long spoon if necessary.  Do not stir the paella from here on.  To get socarrat, you have to leave it undisturbed.
18. After about 8 to 9 minutes, the liquid should be mostly absorbed.  Add 4 more cups of broth.  Cook for 8 to 9 more minutes without stirring. The rice should be al dente at this point.  Distribute the remaining cup of broth.  Add a little to spots where the rice is poking through the liquid. 
19. After a few more minutes, you should hear a light sizzling from the bottom of the pan.  If you don't hear it, don't worry.  The rice shouldn't look soupy, but it also should not be totally dry.  It should look like the picture below.  
20. Remove the pan from the grill, and cover it with a couple of kitchen towels.  Leave it rest for about 15 minutes.  Any remaining liquid should be absorbed by the rice.  

It may take a few attempts to get it right, but it is rewarding, and will feed an army, or give you a week of leftovers.  

Enjoy!

The Impatient Chef.