Recipe: Paella

This paella recipe is a take on Colman Andrews’s ‘Rich Man’s Paella’, so-called because it has everything in it: fish, shellfish and meat.

INGREDIENTS (serves 6-8)

-1 chicken, cut in 6-8 pieces, boned and skinned

-Olive oil

-250g boneless pork loin, sliced

-6—8 small pork sausages

-250g monkfish, skinned, boned and chopped

-250g sea bass or halibut

-6-8 peeled large shrimps

-3 onions, peeled and chopped

-250g squid, cleaned, in rings

-2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

-5 1/2 cups chicken stock

-500g short grain rice

-1/2 cup peas

-1 can artichoke hearts, halved and sprinkled with lemon juice

-4 peppers, roasted and peeled

-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

-2 sprigs finely chopped parsley

-6-8 threads of saffron

-24 mussels, cleaned, steamed open

-Unpeeled prawns for garnish

In a paella pan, sauté the chicken pieces in a small amount of olive oil until golden brown; set aside. Sauté the pork and sausages in the same oil until crisp; set aside. Sauté the fish and shrimps in the same oil, adding more if necessary, until lightly browned; set aside.

Sauté the onions and squid in the same oil until onions soften slightly; then add tomatoes and artichokes, and add a cup of stock. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Return chicken and pork to the pan and add the rice and pepper (reserving about 12 strips for decoration). Add the rest of the stock and cook at a medium heat.

Make a picada (by blending the garlic, parsley and saffron with a drop each of stock and olive oil) and stir into the pan. Stir in fish and shrimps (not the ones for garnish) and season. When the stock is partially evaporated, arrange the mussels, sausages, reserved shrimps and pepper strips on top of the rice and continue cooking until the rice is done and the liquid has evaporated (about 20-25 minutes total cooking time after the rest of the stock is added). When the paella is finished, let stand for five to 10 minutes before serving.

• This recipe comes from My Favourite Food, a charity cookbook written by Jacqy Harding.