Simple Chicken Paella

Posted 2014-07-10 by meg.k ⇒ follow

Paella is one of those dishes that sound very impressive and intimidating, right up until you try making it for yourself.

This simple recipe is a great place to start and before you know it you will be making your own original and delicious versions.

Cooking Time: 30-40 mins
Makes: 5 servings

Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 red or green capsicum
1 cup finely sliced chorizo sausage (salami is a good substitute)
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms

2 cups any white rice
4 cups boiling water
2 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1 large tomato
1 lemon cut into halves
1/2 cup minced spring onion

Method

Boil the kettle and put the oven on to heat at 150 Celcius.

Prepare your ingredients by chopping the onion, capsicum, mushrooms and tomato into bite sized pieces. Finely slice the chorizo.

In a large frying pan with a thick bottom, lightly grease the surface and begin to gently fry the chicken breasts whole.

Add the onion and capsicum to the pan around the chicken and lightly sauté until the vegetables begin to brown.

Keeping the chicken in the frying pan, transfer the onion and capsicum to a heat proof bowl and keep them warm in the oven.

Add the chorizo to the pan and leave to fry undisturbed until the oils begin to melt out of the sausage. At this point, add the mushrooms.

If your chicken is now cooked through, remove it from the pan and re-add the onion and capsicum. If the chicken still needs more time, transfer the mushroom and chorizo to the bowl in the oven until the meat is ready.

When you're ready, return all of the vegetables to the frying pan and add in the dry rice. Stir until the grains are well coated in the oil and begining to soak it in.

Add in the boiling water 1 cup at a time, waiting until about 3/4 has been absorbed before adding the next cup. During this process add the salt, paprika and the juice of one half of your lemon. For extra lemon-y flavor, leave the intact lemon half in the pan.

The dish is finished when the rice is mostly soft but still slightly aldente or firm between your teeth. This should take about 15 mins after you first start adding the hot water.

Slice your chicken into bite sized slices and layer it evenly over the top of the rice along with the tomato in the pan. This will warm it through in a few minutes and you'll be ready to serve.

Sprinkle with the spring onion and squeeze the remaining lemon half over the paella right before dishing up.

There are so many different variations and additions you can make to this recipe so please feel free to experiment.

Enjoy!