Paella Valencia with Dr. Prinkey

Chicken and chorizo paella Valencia

Story:

Paella is a dish cooked for special (aka social) occasions such as anniversaries, dinner parties, and birthdays in the region of Valencia in eastern Spain.  The paellera is the special pan used only for cooking this dish.  The first step in cooking paella is seasoning the paellera with olive oil.  The most traditional variety uses chorizo and rabbit.  The last time Dr. Prinkey made paella was for a dinner party with friends from Oklahoma City.  Because one woman was a vegetarian, he used paprika, extra olive oil, and seafood instead of the chorizo.  Jamie and I don't eat seafood, so we're making paella with chicken and chorizo.  Dr. Prinkey says he loves to cook for people because it makes them feel special, which makes everyone happy :).

Ingredients:

Autentico chorizo picante from Spain that's seasoned with paprika (we used imported chorizo by Palacios that Dr. Prinkey bought from Chain Bridge Sellers) - 225 grams / 7.9 oz / one full link
one whole yellow onion, diced (we used one half of a red onion instead, but the recipe calls for yellow)
One red pepper
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2/3 cup short-grain Calasparra rice that Dr. Prinkey ordered online.  It comes from a coastal region between Andalucia and Valencia in Spain. (In a pinch, you can use arborio rice)
Verdejo white wine from Galicia, Spain
1 Quart Chicken Stock
Saffron
Small bowl for water
2 lemons
Chicken
Frozen peas
Parsley (to garnish)



Instructions:

Season the paellera.  Cut the chorizo into thick rings and quarter each ring.  Dice the onion and red pepper separately and place them in two bowls.  Add the chorizo to the paellera with some olive oil and use a wooden spoon to toss.  Add the pepper, onion, and garlic once the chorizo has begun to get crispy.  Take the paellera off the heat and transfer the meat and veggies to a bowl, leaving the fat from the chorizo in the paellera.  Add the rice to the paellera and mix with a wooden spoon on low heat.  Next add white wine to the rice-we used Verdejo from Galicia.  When you put it on it will sizzle--don't be afraid!!  Continue mixing.
Add chicken stock to the rice/white wine mixture in the paellera.  Heat water (tap is ok) in a small dish, add a pinch of the saffron which should turn the water into a nice yellow color (that color that paella is so famous for).  Continue stirring that rice in the paellera!  Add saffron-water mixture to the rice.

Rice, stock, wine, and saffron

Begin cutting chicken up--you can cut it while you cut the chorizo if you want, we are doing it now :P
Saute (saltear in Spanish) the chicken in a small pan on medium to high heat after seasoning it with pepper and salt (key to a happy life says Dr Prinkey). Don't even worry about oiling the chicken pan-the fat will work just fine.
Stop stirring the rice--the more you stir the more it will want to stick together.  If you let it be, the water will work for you and keep the rice separated.  Valencian tradition says that the bottom of the rice should be a little burnt; it's said to be good luck!  Add chorizo mixture into the rice in the paellera, this is when it begins to smell DELICIOUS.

Rice, aromatics, chorizo. The color comes from saffron!

Cut two lemons (you will use these to drizzle over the paella for a tasty surprise)
Add chicken into the paellera!  Everything is beginning to come together now.
Those peas are next!!! Put the frozen peas directly into the paellera.
Add a little more chicken stock.
Smell for the soccarrat (that rice at the bottom!) that should be bubbling.
Chop up some parsley to garnish the dish with.  Turn the burner(s) off, move the paellera off the heat, and cover with a hand towel.  This technique seems REALLY bizarre but it'll keep the moisture and flavor in the rice. Serve with a nice, crusty bread.


Tune of the Moment: anything by Andres Segovia because he's brilliant and makes you feel like you're in eastern Spain.  Our favorite song is Recuerdos de la Alhambra

What were we snacking on? Spanish lomo serrano (dry cured Serrano pork loin) and paleta serrana (dry cured Serrano pork shoulder) as well as olives.  And sparkling grape juice!  We classy (...and underage).