Paella
Paella
A wide-pan rice from Valencia — saffron, sofrito, and a toasted bottom. Not a dumping ground for every seafood in the shop.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Paella.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 1 hr 10 min
- Difficulty
- A bit of work
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- A bit special$16–28 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Paella is a rice dish cooked in a shallow pan so the liquid evaporates and the bottom toasts (socarrat). Valencian land paella is often chicken, rabbit and beans. Coastal versions take seafood. The tourist 'everything' paella with chorizo is a different party. This home recipe is a chicken-and-prawn weeknight hybrid, named honestly as such, cooked in the widest pan you own. Bomba or another short Spanish rice is worth mail-order; long-grain will not make socarrat properly. Build a dark sofrito, add rice, then stop stirring once the stock is in. Use the widest pan you own and a stock that already tastes seasoned. Done is grains tender with a chalky core gone, and a toasted bottom you can hear when you scrape — black and bitter means you waited too long.
Ingredients
- Short-grain rice, bomba or calasparra if possible360 g
- Chicken, thighs, bone-in if you can500 g
- Prawn200 g
- Olive oil59 ml
- Onion, finely chopped1 small
- Tomato, grated, skins discarded2 medium
- Garlic, sliced3 clove
- Paprika4.9 ml
- Saffron, steeped in 2 tbsp warm water1 pinch
- Water, or light chicken stock900 ml
- Lemon, wedges1
- Salt4.9 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Season chicken. Heat olive oil in the widest pan you have. Brown chicken well, 8 minutes. Set aside.
10 minStep 2
Sofrito: cook onion until soft, then tomato and garlic until thick and jammy, 8–10 minutes. Stir in paprika off the fiercest heat so it does not burn.
10 minStep 3
Stir in rice to coat. Add saffron water, salt and hot stock. Nestle chicken back in. Shake the pan once to level. Do not stir again.
5 minWatch: Stirring is risotto. Paella wants a crust.
Step 4
Simmer briskly 10 minutes, then lower the heat 8–10 minutes more until the liquid is almost gone. Add prawns for the last 6 minutes.
20 minStep 5
Listen for a faint crackle. Raise heat 60–90 seconds to toast the bottom. Rest off the heat, covered with a cloth, 5 minutes. Lemon on the side.
7 minTip: If the bottom burns black, you waited too long. Brown-gold is the prize.
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 10 October.
Substitutions
Bomba rice → Arborio
Starchier. Use a little less liquid and accept a creamier grain.
Prawns → More chicken and green beans
Closer to a land paella mood.
Tips
- A 30cm skillet for this quantity is cramped; two pans is allowed.
- Chorizo in paella is a fight. If you add it, you are cooking a tasty rice with chorizo. Live your life, name it honestly.
History & culture
In Valencia, paella is Sunday, family, and rules. Elsewhere it became Spain's export dish. We respect the rice technique even when the topping is a home-cook compromise. Valencian families still treat Sunday paella as a rule-bound gathering, often outdoors. Coastal towns cook seafood versions; inland plates stay land-based. Catalonia and Valencia will correct you about names. Tourist pans that throw in chorizo and every shellfish at once are a party dish with a borrowed title.
Rice agriculture around Valencia, with Islamic-era roots, produced a family of pan rice dishes. The global restaurant paella is 20th-century branding as much as farm cooking. Pan rice around Valencia has deep agricultural roots; the global restaurant 'paella' is twentieth-century tourism as much as farm cooking. Colouring and cheap saffron substitutes are shop habits, not tradition. We are writing a home hybrid and saying so. Farm workers' wide-pan rice is the older practice; the branded export plate came later.
Inspired by — Chicken and prawn, not a strict Valencian land paella (rabbit, snails, beans) and not a pure seafood paella. The rice method is the traditional part.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Paella take?
1 hr 10 min all in — 25 min prep, 45 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 people. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
A bit of work.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Shellfish. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Nut-free.
What does it cost to cook?
A bit special — about $16–28 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Paella pan, Frying pan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Bomba rice → Arborio. Starchier. Use a little less liquid and accept a creamier grain. Prawns → More chicken and green beans. Closer to a land paella mood.
What should I watch for?
Stirring is risotto. Paella wants a crust.
Any tips from this recipe?
A 30cm skillet for this quantity is cramped; two pans is allowed. Chorizo in paella is a fight. If you add it, you are cooking a tasty rice with chorizo. Live your life, name it honestly.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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