Chicken Paella

Name: Chicken Paella
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: 5 tbsp olive oil; 600 g (1⅓ lb) boneless chicken thighs, skinless, cut in 4 cm (1½ in) pieces; 8 g (1½ tsp) fine sea salt, divided, plus more to taste; 150 g (5 oz) flat or green beans, trimmed, cut in 4 cm lengths; 1 red pepper, cut in strips; 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 2 ripe tomatoes, grated on a box grater, skins discarded (about 200 g); 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika, pimentón; 1 pinch saffron threads, about ½ tsp loosely packed; 1⅛ l (4½ cups) Chicken Stock, hot, or good store-bought; 300 g (1½ cups) Spanish short-grain rice, Bomba or Calasparra; or Arborio; 1 can (15 oz) butter beans or white beans, 400 g, drained; 2 sprigs rosemary; 1 lemon, in wedges

A wide pan of saffron rice in the Valencian style, with a crisp golden base

Serves: 4
Hands-on: 35 min
Total: 1 h 15 min
Level: Some skill

Paella is a rice dish first: thin, flavorful, crusted on the bottom and never stirred once the stock goes in. This home version uses chicken thighs, green beans and white beans as in Valencia, cooked in a large frying pan if you have no paella pan, and builds flavor with a slow tomato sofrito, smoked paprika and saffron.

Ingredients

5 tbspolive oil
600 gboneless chicken thighs (1⅓ lb)skinless, cut in 4 cm (1½ in) pieces
8 gfine sea salt (1½ tsp)divided, plus more to taste
150 gflat or green beans (5 oz)trimmed, cut in 4 cm lengths
1red peppercut in strips
3 clovesgarlicfinely chopped
2ripe tomatoesgrated on a box grater, skins discarded (about 200 g)
2 tspsweet smoked paprikapimentón
1 pinchsaffron threadsabout ½ tsp loosely packed
1⅛ lChicken Stock (4½ cups)hot, or good store-bought
300 gSpanish short-grain rice (1½ cups)Bomba or Calasparra; or Arborio
1 canbutter beans or white beans (15 oz)400 g, drained
2 sprigsrosemary
1lemonin wedges

Diet: Gluten-free, Dairy-free
Allergens: celery
Origin: Spain (Valencia)
Season: Summer, Autumn

Method

Crumble the saffron into the hot stock and leave it to steep.
Heat the oil in a 34–38 cm (13–15 in) paella pan or your widest frying pan over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with half the salt and brown it well on all sides, 8–10 minutes. Push it to the edges. 10 min
Add the green beans and pepper to the center and fry until blistered, 4 minutes. 4 min
Add the garlic for 30 seconds, then the grated tomato. Cook, stirring, until it darkens and thickens into a paste and the oil separates, 5–6 minutes. Stir in the paprika for 15 seconds. 6 min
Pour in the hot saffron stock and the rest of the salt. Bring to a boil and taste: the liquid should be pleasantly salty, a little saltier than soup.
Scatter the rice evenly across the pan in a thin layer and nudge it under the liquid with a spoon. Add the beans and lay the rosemary on top. From now on, do not stir.
Boil hard for 10 minutes, then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice has absorbed the liquid and small holes appear on the surface, 8–10 minutes more. By now the chicken is well past 74°C (165°F). On a small burner, rotate the pan every few minutes so the heat reaches the edges. 20 min
For the crust (socarrat), turn the heat up to medium-high for 1–2 minutes until the rice crackles and you can smell toasting, not burning. A spoon pushed to the bottom should meet a firm, golden layer. 2 min
Take off the heat, cover with a clean towel and rest for 5–10 minutes. Serve from the pan with lemon wedges. 8 min

Why it works

Short-grain Spanish rice absorbs about three times its volume of stock while staying intact, and because you do not stir, the starch is not released and the grains stay separate rather than creamy. A thin layer in a wide pan means the liquid evaporates evenly and the bottom crisps into socarrat. Grated tomato cooked down to a paste gives concentrated, savory depth without chunks.

Common mistakes

Stirring after the rice goes in: it turns creamy like risotto.
Too deep a layer of rice: it cooks unevenly. Keep it no more than 1.5 cm (⅝ in) deep.
Rushing the sofrito: the flavor base needs those minutes to concentrate.

Variations

Seafood paella: Use Fish Stock; skip the chicken and beans; brown 300 g squid rings in the oil, then nestle 12 large raw shrimp and 500 g cleaned mussels into the rice for the last 8 minutes (adds crustaceans and mollusc).
Oven finish: If your burner cannot heat the pan evenly, after step 6 bake at 200°C (400°F) for 18 minutes, then crisp the base on the stove.

Make ahead and storage

The sofrito (to step 4) can be made a day ahead. Paella is best eaten as soon as it has rested.

Notes

Arborio works but absorbs less: use 950 ml stock. Store-bought stock may contain celery. Chorizo is not traditional; if you add it, the dish changes, so this version leaves it out.