With the warmer spring weather on its way, paella is a great entertaining dish to put in the middle of the table for everyone to help themselves. A favourite of our customers in the poultry industry, Geoff’s chicken and seafood paella recipe is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. As a product specialist (DC Norris, BCH Ltd and AMTek Microwaves), and former chef, Geoff knows a thing or two about food. So if you’re looking for a mouthwatering recipe, you’ve come to the right place.
Overview:
Chicken and seafood paella ingredients
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 200g chorizo (roughly 2 chorizo sausages), sliced into ½ cm rounds
- 200g squid (calamari), cut into 7mm pieces
- 300g chicken thigh fillets, cut into 3.5cm pieces
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 red capsicum, diced
- 1 ½ cups paella rice (bomba)*
- 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled and diced or ¾ cup canned diced tomato
- 3 ½ cups chicken stock
- 1 tsp saffron threads (or a good pinch of powdered saffron)
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 12-16 medium/large green prawns, whole
- 12 large mussels, cleaned & fresh
Garnish
- Fresh parsley chopped
- 2 lemons, cut into wedges
*You can substitute with arborio rice, but you will need ½ cup extra liquid.
| Prep Time | 15 mins |
| Cook Time | 30 mins |
| Serves | 5-6 (for extra people, allow for ⅓ cup of rice per person, plus 150g of protein and seafood) |
Method
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a 30cm/10″ paella pan or large skillet over high heat. Add the chorizo and chicken and cook until browned (around 3 minutes).
- To the same pan, add the onion, garlic, capsicum and cook for 2 minutes on high.
- Add the rice. Mix until the rice is coated in oil and mixed thoroughly with the meat and vegetables.
- Add chicken stock, diced (or canned tomatoes) and saffron. Stir.
- Bring everything to a simmer, then adjust the heat so it’s simmering gently (not super rapidly or the rice will burn). Simmer for 10 minutes – no stirring!
- Add peas, squid, prawns and mussels. Scatter over the peas and push the prawns and mussels into the rice.
- Cook for 8 minutes or until the prawns are opaque, the mussels are open and most of the liquid has been absorbed but is still a bit “liquidy”. Discard any mussels that do not open.
- Check the rice – do a taste test to see if the rice is cooked. It should be firm, but cooked. If it’s too firm for your taste, just add a splash of hot water (not too much!) and keep cooking.
- To serve, leave in the pan and garnish with parsley and wedges of lemon.
- Take to the table as is and enjoy!
Chicken and seafood paella FAQ
What are the main ingredients in a paella?
The main ingredients in paella are rice, vegetables, chicken (or rabbit) and saffron. But you can obviously add as many (or few) ingredients on top of this as you like, depending on the version of paella you want to make. In Geoff’s chicken and seafood paella, for example, he’s added squid, prawns and mussels!
What rice is used for paella?
In our chicken and seafood paella, we’ve used bomba rice (which is a short grain rice). This is because the short grain rice absorbs the liquid and flavours really well. But you can also use arborio rice or medium grain rice.
What is the secret to a good paella?
The secret to a good chicken and seafood paella is to not disturb or stir it at the end of the cooking. This will help develop a crust known as the socarrat on the bottom, which becomes caramelised and toasted on the bottom of the pan when it is cooking – delicious!
Do you boil rice before making paella?
Nope! The rice will cook in the paella (using the chicken stock and other liquids). The great thing about a chicken and seafood paella recipe, is that it’s a one-pot dish!
