Best 8 Easy Paella Recipes

QUICK AND EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• Cook and stir reserved shrimp shells and 2 teaspoons olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat until shells are pink and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir saffron into shells; add chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and cook until broth is a rusty brown and fragrant, about 20 minutes.
• Strain saffron broth through a fine-mesh sieve; measure out 2 cups of broth, pour into a small saucepan, and place over low heat to keep broth hot.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Cook chorizo slices in hot oil until browned, about 2 minutes per side. Add onion to sausage; cook and stir until soft and slightly translucent, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low.
• Stir garlic into chorizo mixture; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice to skillet and stir to coat rice completely in oil; stir in peas.
• Pat rice mixture evenly into the bottom of the skillet. Arrange shrimp in a single layer over the top of the rice. Lay pepper strips around and in between shrimp; season with salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper.
• Increase heat to high. When rice begins to sizzle in the skillet, pour reserved 2 cups hot saffron broth over the shrimp; gently shake the skillet to distribute liquid.
• Bake rice mixture in the preheated oven until rice is almost tender and still a bit wet, about 20 minutes.
• Place skillet over medium-high and cook until rice is tender, liquid is absorbed, and rice caramelizes and crusts slightly on the bottom of the skillet, 3 to 5 minutes.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• In a heavy 12-inch saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Cook shrimp until just pink on both sides, 4 to 5 minutes (do not overcook). Transfer to a plate.
• Add remaining tablespoon oil and sausage to pan; cook over medium-high heat until beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and rice; cook, stirring to coat, until rice is translucent, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Stir in paprika, turmeric, tomatoes, and broth, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan with a wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper.
• Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover, and cook until rice is tender and has absorbed almost all liquid, 20 to 25 minutes. Stir in peas; cook 1 minute. Stir in cooked shrimp; serve immediately.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees, or as near as you can. Warm the stock in a saucepan with the saffron. Place a 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil. One minute later, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the rice, and cook, stirring occasionally, until glossy -- just a minute or two. Season liberally with salt and pepper, and add the warmed stock, taking care to avoid the rising steam. Stir in the shrimp, and transfer the pan to the oven.
• Bake about 25 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is dry on top. Garnish, and serve immediately.

SUNNY'S EASY MUSSELS AND SHRIMP PAELLA POUCHES

Steps:

• For the seafood: Combine the olive oil, paprika, garlic, lemon zest, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper in a small bowl. Combine the frozen mussels and shrimp (still frozen) in a large bowl and drizzle the mixture over the top. Toss the seafood to evenly coat.
• For the pouches: Lay four 16- to 20-inch-long pieces of nonstick aluminum foil out on a flat surface and top each one with a piece of parchment paper the same size. Divide the ingredients equally amongst each pouch, starting with the onions in the center of each in a 3-by-5-inch rectangle. Top the onions with the tomato halves, a pinch of salt, rice, peas, then seafood. To close, pull the long sides up over the mixture to meet and fold down together leaving some room for steam (about an inch above your pile), then close the short ends and fold upwards for easy opening.
• Set the oven or grill to 375 degrees F.
• Arrange the pouches on a baking sheet if using the oven, just in case you have a tiny spill. Bake or place the pouches over the indirect heat and cook for 25 minutes. Remove one and open gently; if the mussels are not open and the shrimp are still a bit underdone, close and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Remove the pouches, and, when cool enough to handle, open and spritz with lemon and garnish with parsley.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons olive oil, paprika, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir in chicken pieces to coat. Cover, and refrigerate.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over medium heat. Stir in garlic, red pepper flakes, and rice. Cook, stirring, to coat rice with oil, about 3 minutes. Stir in saffron threads, bay leaf, parsley, chicken stock, and lemon zest. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a separate skillet over medium heat. Stir in marinated chicken and onion; cook 5 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and sausage; cook 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp; cook, turning the shrimp, until both sides are pink.
• Spread rice mixture onto a serving tray. Top with meat and seafood mixture.

EASY PARTY PAELLA

Steps:

• Disjoint the chicken wings, discarding the wing tips or reserving them for making stock. Place the remaining wing pieces in a large bowl. Mix three tablespoons of the olive oil with the lemon juice and cumin. Season this mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Pour over the chicken wings, cover and allow to marinate one to four hours.
• Up to two hours before serving time, steam the mussels. Bring the wine to a simmer in a large pot, add the mussels, cover tightly and cook over medium heat until they open, about 10 minutes. Leave the mussels in the covered pan until shortly before serving time.
• Saute the chorizos over medium heat in a six-quart casserole until they are cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove them from the casserole, draining them well, and set them aside on a plate covered with a paper towel. Leave the fat in the casserole. Add the remaining olive oil to the casserole.
• Add the onions and peppers to the casserole and cook over low heat, stirring, until the vegetables are soft but not brown. Stir in the garlic, cook briefly, then add the oregano. Stir in the rice and cook for several minutes, stirring, until the rice is well coated with the other ingredients. Remove the casserole from the heat.
• Drain the canned tomatoes, pricking them to drain the liquid inside. Reserve all the tomato liquid and chop the tomatoes fine. Stir the chopped tomatoes in with the rice.
• Measure the reserved tomato liquid. You should have about a cup and a half. Add a little water if necessary to make this amount. Place the tomato liquid in a saucepan along with the chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Stir in the saffron, remove from the heat and allow to steep for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, slice the cooled chorizo into rounds a half-inch thick.
• Place the casserole over medium-low heat and bring to a simmer. Stir in the pieces of chorizo, then stir in the tomato and chicken stock seasoned with the saffron. Bring to a simmer and add salt and pepper, if necessary. Cover and cook over low heat until all of the liquid is absorbed and the rice is done, which should take about 20 minutes. Set aside, covered for at least 20 minutes.
• While the rice is cooking, remove the shrimps from the refrigerator so they can come to room temperature.
• Preheat a broiler. Place the marinated chicken wings on a broiling pan and broil until they are browned and cooked through, about 25 minutes. Turn them once during the cooking. Transfer them to a large platter or bowl, cover with foil and set aside.
• To serve, spoon the rice gently into one or more large mixing bowls to fluff it. Do not fill the bowls more than half full or you will have rice all over the floor. Taste the rice for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if necessary, so that the seasoning will need no further adjusting.
• Gently fold the capers, parsley, shrimp and chicken wings in with the rice.
• Warm a large serving platter or shallow bowl. Even a big paella pan can be used as a serving dish. Transfer some or all of the paella to the platter or bowl. If there is not enough room for all the paella on one platter, you can use two platters or keep some of the paella reserved in the kitchen for refilling the platter.
• Briefly reheat the mussels in their broth, then arrange them, in their shells, around the edge of the platter, alternating them with the lemon wedges. Place the platter on the buffet table along with serving spoons. After all the guests have served themselves, rearrange the paella on the platter, refilling the platter, if necessary, or transferring the remaining paella to a smaller platter so it continues to look attractive.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Spray two 11x7-inch glass baking dishes with cooking spray. In medium bowl, toss shrimp and scallops with 1 tablespoon of the oil and generous pinch of the saffron threads; cover and refrigerate.
• In 4-quart Dutch oven, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Cook garlic and onions in oil about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are crisp-tender. Stir in tomatoes, artichokes and sausage. Cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in rice. Spread half of rice mixture evenly in each baking dish.
• In 2-quart saucepan, heat broth, paprika and 1 teaspoon saffron threads to boiling. Pour 2 cups broth mixture evenly over rice mixture in each baking dish.
• Cover with foil. Bake 35 minutes. Place shrimp and scallops on rice mixture in each dish. Cover and bake 15 to 20 minutes or until shrimp are pink and scallops are white and opaque. Sprinkle with parsley.

EASY SPANISH PAELLA

Steps:

• 1. In lg skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add rice, reserving flavor packet. Brown as directed on pkg.
• 2. Increase heat to high and stir in water, tomatoes, salsa, and flavoring packet from rice. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to med-low. Cover, simmer 15 mins.
• 3. Stir in the corn, kielbasa and layer shrimp on top. Cook 5 min, or until shrimp are pink and liquid is absorbed.