Chicken, Sausage & Shrimp Paella

Sunday was a double celebration in my husband's family...it was Mother's Day AND my father-in-law's birthday. We decided to have a low-key at-home celebration, so I made a three-tier red velvet cake and dinner. I had some jumbo shrimp and Spanish sausages in my freezer, so I decided to try my hand at making paella. I searched the internet and found several good recipes, so I combined a few of them to come up with the paella that I ultimately made.

I won't lie...paella isn't a quick dish to whip up on a work night. It takes about 1.5 hours to do the prep work and cook the paella, so it's best to make on a lazy weekend when you can take your time. It is a lot of work, but the payoff is a fantastic melding of flavors in one skillet: rice, aromatic vegetables, and a bit of smokiness from smoked Spanish paprika and diced ham. In some ways, it reminds me a bit of the creole classic jambalaya.

This recipe makes a LOT...we had five hungry people eating this for dinner last night, and there was still about 1/3 of the paella leftover. So, I'd estimate that this recipe would easily feed 6-7 people. You can serve it with a salad, but we simply ate it with crusty French bread and butter. Truth told? We were saving room for two cakes: one birthday cake, one Mother's Day cake!

Chicken, Sausage & Shrimp Paella

adapted from Cooking Light

Step 1:  Combine the following ingredients in a measuring cup: 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1 tbs. olive oil, 1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, and 3 finely chopped garlic cloves. Stir to combine and set aside.

Place 1 tsp. saffron threads and a 48-ounce carton of chicken broth in a medium saucepan over med-low heat. Bring to a simmer until you're ready to add to the paella mixture.

Step 2:  Heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a large saute pan over med-high heat. When the pan is hot, add 2 links Spanish sausage cut into large chunks -- I used one link of fresh chorizo and one garlic-pepper sausage and about 1/2 lb. chicken chunks. I used two chicken thighs and three chicken tenderloins. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add another tbs. olive oil, 1/4 lb. chopped ham, and 1 lb. peeled jumbo shrimp. Leave on the tails. Cook the shrimp about 2 minutes per side -- they'll still be opaque, but they will finish cooking in the paella. 

Step 3:  Set the shrimp and ham aside with the chicken and sausage. Add 1/2 chopped white onion to pan and cook for about 10 minutes, until browned. Then add 1 cup diced tomatoes, a ladle of the reserved saffron-broth mixture, 3 chopped garlic cloves, and 1 tbs. smoked paprika. Stir well and cook this mixture for about five minutes.

Step 4:  Add 2 cups long grain rice to the veggie mixture and stir to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the reserved parsley mixture and stir to combine. Then add half the saffron-infused broth to the saucepan and stir again. Next, add the reserved sausage, chicken, and ham to the rice mixture. Place them into the mixture in an alternating pattern.

Step 5:  Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and add the remaining saffron-infused broth to the skillet. Stir to combine and add the reserved shrimp evenly on top of the paella, pushing them into the rice.  The pan will be pretty packed by then, so fit the shrimp where you can among the other meat.

Step 6: Cover the paella with more foil and simmer for another 15 minutes. Then, remove the skillet from the heat and top the foil with a folded kitchen towel. Let the pan sit for 10-15 minutes before serving. This step is essential because this last steaming allows the rice to fully cook and all the liquid to be absorbed. When you serve, make sure to include a bit of chicken, sausage, ham, and shrimp into each person's plate. Next time, I plan to make a simple salad to round out this meal!

There you have it -- authentic Spanish paella. If you like, you can serve additional lemon wedges on the side so people can add it to taste. This paella is full of flavor...and it makes a really nice presentation when you bring the pan to the table! The next time you need to feed a crowd and want to impress them with something with a lot of Wow Factor, I hope you'll give this paella a try!!

Share this post