Best All American Paella Recipes

THE ULTIMATE PAELLA

Steps:

• Combine the paprika and oregano in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix all over the chicken and marinate chicken for 1 hour in the refrigerator.
• Heat oil in a paella pan over medium-high heat. Saute the chorizo until browned, remove and reserve. Add chicken skin-side down and brown on all sides, turning with tongs. Add salt and freshly ground pepper. Remove from pan and reserve.
• In the same pan, make a sofrito by sauteing the onions, garlic, and parsley. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes on a medium heat. Then, add tomatoes and cook until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld. Fold in the rice and stir-fry to coat the grains. Pour in water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Add chicken, chorizo, and saffron. Add the clams and shrimp, tucking them into the rice. The shrimp will take about 8 minutes to cook. Give the paella a good shake and let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, for about 15 minutes. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, when the rice is filling the pan, add the lobster tails. When the paella is cooked and the rice looks fluffy and moist, turn the heat up for 40 seconds until you can smell the rice toast at the bottom, then it's perfect.
• Remove from heat and rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with peas, parsley and lemon wedges.

PAELLA 'A L'AMERICAINE

Steps:

• Prick sausage in several places with a pin and place in a paella pan or electric skillet with 1/4 inch water; cover and simmer slowly 5 minutes, then drain, discarding liquid.
• Cut sausage into 1/2-inch pieces and saute' in pan with the oil until lightly browned; stir in onions and peppers.
• Cover and cook slowly until vegetables are tender.
• Remove with a slotted spoon, leaving fat in pan.
• Dry chicken pieces in paper towels, heat fat in pan, and brown chicken on all sides.
• Drain fat out of pan, add the sausage and vegetables, then the remaining ingredients.
• Cover and simmer slowly for 15 minutes--chicken will be one-half to two-thirds cooked, and will finish later, with the rice.
• (May be cooked in advance; bring to the boil before proceeding.) About half an hour before serving, bring chicken and sausage to the rapid boil on top of the stove.
• Sprinkle in the rice, mixing it down into the liquid with a spoon.
• Boil rapidly 5 to 6 minutes, uncovered--do not stir the rice.
• When it has swollen and begun to rise to the surface, rapidly push the shrimp, tail end down, into the rice; strew on the tomatoes, peas or beans, chickpeas, and olives.
• Again, do not stir, simply push these ingredients down into the rice with a spoon.
• Carefully correct seasoning.
• Reduce heat and let paella simmer for another 8 to 10 minutes, or more, uncovered, until rice is just tender--slightly al dente.
• (It is best not to cover the pan, but if you feel the rice is not cooking properly, cover for a few minutes, sprinkling on a few tbsps. or so of stock or water if rice seems dry; then uncover to finish cooking.) At the end of the cooking, the rice will have absorbed the liquid.
• Serve the paella from its cooking pan, and decorate with the lemon quarters and parsley.
• Note: When finished cooking, I will cover and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

PAELLA. AMERICAN-STYLE

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, tomato paste and beef. Brown the steak; transfer to a bowl and set aside.
• Make the rice a roni in a large skillet, according to manufacturer's instructions. Just before you put on the lid, add all of the remaining ingredients, except the beef mixture. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Add the beef the last 10 minutes of cooking to warm through.
• Click here to view Food Network Kitchen's healthier version of this recipe.

PAELLA

Steps:

• Spritz 4 to 5 pieces of newspaper with vegetable oil and put in the bottom of a charcoal chimney starter. Fill the chimney with half of the charcoal and light the newspaper.
• When the charcoal is lightly covered with gray ash, carefully pour onto the bottom grate of a kettle grill and spread evenly. Top with the remaining unlit charcoal, spreading evenly so as not to suffocate the lit charcoal. Set the second grate in the kettle and cover until ready to cook.
• Meanwhile, halve the tomatoes and remove the seeds to a fine mesh strainer set over a small bowl to catch the juice. Grate the seeded halves on the large hole side of a box grater and discard the skins. Combine the reserved juice and grated tomato and set aside.
• Warm the chicken broth in a kettle or 4-quart saucepan over high heat until it reaches 200 degrees F. Remove the broth from the heat and cover to keep warm.
• Combine the rice, saffron, rosemary, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and paprika in a small mixing bowl.
• Heat the olive oil in the paella pan on the prepared grill. Season the chicken on all sides with the remaining 2 teaspoons of salt. Once the olive oil shimmers, add the chicken and cook until golden brown on both sides, approximately 5 to 6 minutes per side. Move the chicken to the outer edges of the pan. Add the green beans, red bell pepper, green bell pepper and garlic to the center of the pan and cook until they begin to soften and darken in color, approximately 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juice and cook until most of the liquid has dissipated and the tomatoes thicken and darken, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add the rice mixture to the center of the pan and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute.
• Redistribute the chicken pieces on top of the rice. Add 4 cups of the warm chicken broth and stir to distribute the rice evenly in the pan, making sure that all rice is completely submerged in liquid. From this point forward do not stir the paella. After 8 to 9 minutes, when all of the liquid is absorbed and the rice appears dry, add an additional 4 cups of broth. Continue to cook without stirring, until the liquid is absorbed, about 8 to 9 minutes. The rice should be firm to the bite and the grains have a tiny white dot in the center. Add the remaining cup of broth as needed, until the rice is cooked through. Watch the fire to make sure it is heating evenly and adjust the pan to prevent uneven cooking.
• Remove the pan from the heat, cover with a tea towel and rest for 15 minutes before serving.

ALL-AMERICAN PAELLA

Steps:

• In a very large skillet (at least 14 inches in diameter), or in a 15-inch paella pan, heat three-quarters of a cup of the olive oil over high heat until very hot, about two minutes. Add the chicken-wing drumsticks and the sausages and saute, turning frequently, for about five minutes, until the meats are nicely browned. Remove and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Discard the oil in the skillet and add the remaining quarter cup of olive oil; heat over medium-high heat for 30 seconds. Add the onion and garlic and saute for five minutes, stirring frequently, or just until the onion begins to turn golden brown. Add the chopped tomatoes, pureed red peppers and pulverized chili pepper, and simmer over medium-high heat for five minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add the rice to the skillet and stir over medium-high heat for two minutes. Add the hot chicken broth, white wine, lemon juice, parsley, chives, bay leaf, salt, pepper and hot-pepper sauce. Stir over medium-high heat for five minutes.
• Turn off the heat and add to the skillet the reserved chicken wings and sausages, the lobster, ham, mussels, squid and sugar snap peas. Stir once, carefully, and place the skillet, uncovered, in the preheated oven. After 20 minutes, taste the rice to make sure it is completely cooked. If so, remove from oven and cover loosely with foil. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.