Paella

We are sharing a big dish of paella and discussing where to go on holiday. "This is awful," says the youngest. "What are are these bouncy circles? Why do you have to put plants in everything?"

"What about Africa?" We all very much enjoyed David Attenborough's recent trip and if you don't take too much notice of the after bit when the crew go on about it taking nine months to get one shot of a turtle, it's fair to assume that a similarly rich experience could be captured in a couple of weeks.

"Yeah I've heard Oscar Pistorius' place is empty."

"But no lock on the bathroom lol."

"Actually he wanted to repair the bathroom door but his girlfriend was dead aginst it."

"Do I have to have the yellow stuff on my crouton or is there any Chocolate Philadelphia left?"

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into three
• 75g cooking chorizo cut into thick slices
• Two medium onions, peeled and chopped
• 1 red pepper, quartered, deseeded and sliced
• 1 yellow pepper, quartered, deseeded and sliced
• 150g/5½oz green beans, trimmed and cut into 2cm lengths
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 2 tsp smoked paprika (the smokiness really makes a difference. I got mine from next door)
• 2 good pinches saffron threads
• 1 bay leaf
• 175g/6oz paella rice (arborio would do)
• 1 litre hot chicken stock
• 1 bag Sainsbury's Taste the Difference frozen seafood. Better to use raw prawns. these are cooked but I picked them out to have in a sandwich the next day and used some raw ones)

 

Method

1. Heat the oil in a 38cm/15in paella pan or a very wide, shallow non-stick saucepan, flameproof casserole dish or sauté pan.
2. Place the pan over a medium heat. Season the chicken thighs with salt and black pepper and fry them for about five minutes, turning every now and then until lightly coloured. Add the chorizo and cook for 30 seconds more, turning once. Transfer the chicken and chorizo to a large heatproof bowl with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pan.
3. Add the onions to the pan and fry gently for 4–5 minutes until softened and very lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add the peppers and green beans to the onions and cook for two minutes until they are beginning to soften. Stir in the garlic, smoked paprika, saffron, bay leaf and rice and cook for 1–2 minutes until the rice is glistening all over.
4. Return the chicken and chorizo to the pan, along with any juices. Stir well, then pour in the chicken stock and season with black pepper. Stir once or twice and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Scatter the seafood over the top of the paella and stir well. Continue cooking for 4–5 minutes until almost all the liquid has been absorbed.
6. It’s important not to keep stirring – you want the rice to become lightly browned and a bit sticky at the sides of the pan as this adds flavour. Keep an eye on the heat though, as you don’t want the rice to burn. Add a splash more water if the paella begins to look very dry before the rice is ready. 
7. Serve hot with lemon wedges and parsley.

 

This is brilliant served with aioli croutons (bake thin slices of baguette brushed with olive oil until crisp and dollop with a mayonnaise made by slowly whisking a cup of sunflower oil to one egg yolk, 1tsp dijon mustard, a pinch of salt and 1 clove garlic.)