Smoky Chicken and Chorizo Paella with Saffron Rice
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Smoky Chicken and Chorizo Paella with Saffron Rice
Golden saffron rice, smoky chorizo, tender chicken, and bright lemon wedges turn this paella into the kind of dinner that feels wildly impressive without requiring professional-chef levels of emotional stability. The crisp socarrat on the bottom is worth every second of patience.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tomatoes, grated on a box grater
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 3½ cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 10 ounces boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 generous pinch saffron
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 4 ounces Spanish-style chorizo, diced into ¼-inch pieces
- 1½ cups paella rice (bomba)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ⅓ cup frozen peas, thawed
- 2 lemons, cut into wedges
Instructions
- Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a paella pan or wide skillet over medium-high heat. (I use my Le Creuset braiser, even though I have a paella pan.) Add the onion and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often, until softened and lightly golden around the edges.
- Add the red bell pepper and garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes until fragrant.
- Stir in the grated tomatoes, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, kosher salt, and bay leaf. Lower the heat slightly and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until the mixture becomes thick, rich, and deeply red. This sofrito is the foundation of the entire dish, so give it the attention it deserves instead of treating it like a tedious administrative task.
- While the sofrito cooks, bring the chicken stock to a gentle simmer in a saucepan. Keep warm over low heat.
- Push the sofrito to the outer edges of the pan and add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil to the centre. Add the chicken and cook for about 5 minutes until lightly browned.
- Add the saffron, remaining smoked paprika, and turmeric directly to the oil and stir constantly for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the chorizo and stir everything together so the oils and spices coat the chicken and vegetables evenly.
- Pour in 3 cups of the warm chicken stock. Add the paella rice and kosher salt, stirring gently to distribute the rice evenly across the pan.
- Increase the heat slightly and let the paella bubble steadily for 5 to 7 minutes, until the rice begins to appear through the surface of the liquid.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook undisturbed for 10 minutes. If the pan looks dry before the rice is fully cooked, add a splash more warm stock as needed.
- Meanwhile, quickly blanch the peas by pouring boiling water over them, letting them stand for 1 minute, then draining well.
- Remove the lid and increase the heat to medium-high for about 2 minutes to develop the socarrat, the crisp caramelised layer on the bottom of the pan. Rotate the pan occasionally if your burner heats unevenly.
- To check the socarrat, gently lift a small section of rice with a spoon. The bottom should be toasted and golden rather than burnt, and the rice should be tender with a slight bite remaining.
- Scatter the peas over the paella, cover again, and let rest off the heat for 10 minutes.
- Serve straight from the pan with lemon wedges alongside.
Costs
- Total Cost: $13.29
- Cost per Serving: $2.21
Costs calculated in May 2026 in Cleveland, USA, using ingredients from Aldi, with the exception of chorizo from Meijer, oil from Thrive Market, paprika and salt from Whole Foods, saffron and paella rice from Amazon, and chicken stock made at home.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
475Fat
20 gSat. Fat
4 gCarbs
52 gFiber
4 gNet carbs
48 gSugar
6 gProtein
21 gSodium
1220 mgCholesterol
61 mgNutritional information is an estimate only, and depends on the ingredients you use.
