I had nothing in the fridge to cook. Remember, I don’t normally freeze meat but I looked in the freezer and noticed I had some chicken thighs in there. I must have thrown them into the freezer at some point, so not to spoil them too soon. I’ll just let them freezer burn and then throw them out. Then I saw some frozen bacon. Bacon… I do freeze because I can cook them from a frozen state and because of all the fat, I can cut through them easily too. And I had some frozen prawns… which are easily defrosted in cold water. Great! Now what?
I decided to make paella. Paella is a Spanish rice dish that usually consists of sausage, chicken, and shellfish… well… the ones I’ve tried anyway. But I think I can still call this paella because of the cooking method and my loose interpretation of the ingredients. Why not? If you’re looking for an authentic recipe for paella, this isn’t it. But here goes nothing…
Paella
Ingredients
4 strips of bacon, chopped
8 chicken thighs
2T paprika
1t dried oregano
salt & pepper to taste
3T extra virgin olive oil (divided)
1 onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
2 cups arborio rice
2 tomatoes chopped
1 bay leaf
a pinch of saffron threads
2t dried parsley
4 cups chicken broth
12 shrimp or prawns shelled and pat dry
Instructions
1. Combine chicken thighs, paprika, oregano, salt & pepper and 2T olive oil and set aside.
2. While the chicken is doing it’s thing, place bacon in a cold, large frying pan (10″- 12″) and brown on medium heat. Remove onto a paper towel to drain.
3. Place marinated chicken, skin side down, in the hot frying pan and sear for about 6 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken onto a plate. Drain the fat from the frying pan.
4. Add remaining 1T olive oil into the pan and sautée until tender (about 5 minutes) being sure to scrape all the brown bits off the bottom. That’s where all the flavour is.
5. Add garlic and sautée for 1 minute. Add rice and sautée for 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, bay leaf, saffron, and parsley and stir. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil.
6. Place the chicken and bacon on top of the rice and cover. Turn the heat down to med/low and simmer for 20 minutes.
7. Place the shrimp/prawns on top of the rice and cover. Cook for another 5-10 minutes until shrimp/prawns are cooked through.
Dinner is served. And I thought there was nothing to cook.
** Note: You can use sausage instead of bacon and add as much seafood as you’d like.
Would love to hear how this turns out for you! Enjoy!