Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo
Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo takes a classic and makes it easy! This delicious and versatile dish is super easy to make and customizable to the preferences of you and your family. Add in or take out some of the meat. Whatever meats you choose, or even if you leave them out, the rice base of this Spanish dish is the best and easiest you’ll find. Try it now! You’ll love it!
What Is Paella?
Many of you have had Paella before and no doubt loved it! Some of may have never even heard of it. So, what exactly is Paella?
Paella is a traditional Spanish dish from Valencia. It utilized what they had locally. Saffron is used to make the rice yellow. Meats and vegetables varry form the individual expression of the one cooking it. Original paella had rabbit and snails. People add calamari, clams, and other seafood. Some add peas, black olive, beans, or other vegetables.
The main thing is the rice base. This recipe have a flavorful rice base that allows you to adjust the meats and vegetables without changing the overall flavor of the rice.
Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo
Paella is traditionally made in a paella pan, a large shallow pan. Everything is added to it and placed in an open oven. However, most of us don’t own a paella pan, and our ovens are indoors and are closed. So . . . let’s make paella in a typical modern kitchen. Here’s some tips:
Dutch Oven. A Dutch oven is a cast iron pot that is coated and has a heavy fitting lid. I have one below and link to Amazon. I use mine all the time. You can also use a stock pot or a large skillet like shown in the picture above. I also have an Amazon link to that 14 inch skillet below.
Vegetarian/Vegan Version. While the meat is a big part of the meal, if can be left out. The chicken stock can be replaced with vegetable stock or water.
Yellow Rice. Saffron is costly, but it can certainly be used. I prefer to use a bag of pre-seasoned rice. It’s so much easier and tasty.
Spanish Chorizo. I use Goya chorizo. For a discussion on the different kinds of chorizo, visit Chorizo Chicken and Vegetables.
Testing Mussels. It is important that you use only live mussels when cooking, otherwise you can get a stomach illness. But don’t worry, testing them is super simple! Here’s how to test the mussels to make sure they’re alive before cooking.
- Run cold water over the mussels to clean and rinse them.
- The mussels that are completely closed are alive. Set these aside.
- Any that are still open, gently tap them on the counter about 5 times and run them under cold water again. If they close, they’re alive.
- Discard any mussels that remain open. These are dead.
What Ingredients Are in Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo?
- 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
- 1 cup Bell Pepper, diced (various colors)
- 1 cup Sweet Onion, diced
- 10 ounce package Yellow Rice
- 2 ½ cups Chicken Stock (I use Better Than Bouillon)
- ½ pound Large Shrimp, peeled and deveined
- ½ pound Boneless/Skinless Chicken Breast, cubed in 1/2 inch pieces
- 4 ounces Spanish Chorizo
- ½ pound Live Mussels* (see Recipe Notes)
- ¼ cup White Wine (I use chardonnay)
- ½ cup Spanish Green Olives, halved lengthwise
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Fresh Lemon Wedges for garnish
- Fresh Parsley, chopped for garnish
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
Yellow Rice – you can use white rice and add some saffron to make it yellow. Or, since saffron is costly, you can add a teaspoon of turmeric to the rice.
Chicken Stock – I like using this for the flavor. You can use straight water or vegetable stock instead.
Meats – this is where versatility really comes in. You can use pretty much whatever, or none at all. Original Paella was made with rabbit and snails, soooo, I guess it’s whatever suits you.
How Is Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo Made?
- In a stock pot or Dutch Oven over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the bell peppers and onions and season with salt and pepper. Cook until soft, about 7-8 minutes.
- Add in the rice and stir for about 1-2 minutes then pour in the chicken stock. Stir and raise the temperature to high. Bring it to a boil then reduce the temperature to low. Cover and let cook for 20 minutes.
- As the vegetables are cooking in step #1, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a 10-12 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the chicken breast and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the liquid runs clear, about 5-8 minutes. Set aside on a plate.
- In the same skillet, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Cook on both side about 2 minutes on each side, or until there is a little crisp on the shrimp. Set aside as well.
- Next, crisp the chorizo in the same pan. Heat them for only 1 minute. The pepper fumes will cause you to cough.
- In another skillet, add the white wine and live mussels* and cover. Allow the mussels to stem for 3-5 minutes. Remove the lid and all the mussels that are open. If there are any that are still close, return the lid and let them steam for another 1-2 minutes. Any that are still closed after this, discard. Only use the ones that open while steaming.
- Once the rice is done, add in all the meats – chicken, shrimp, chorizo, and 1/2 of the mussels – along with the Spanish olives. Stir well to evenly incorporate everything throughout the dish.
- When serving, top with fresh parsley, lemon wedges, and the mussels you reserved.
What Can I Do with the Leftovers?
The leftovers will keep nicely in fridge for us to 3-4 days. These reheat nicely on the stove or in the microwave.
Can I Freeze Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo?
Yes. But. If you are going to use shellfish like mussels, clams, etc, I would recommend not including them in with the rest of the batch you’re planning on freezing. When you go to defrost it to have as a meal in the future, buy fresh ones of those.
Useful Kitchen Tools
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Paella with Seafood Chicken and Chorizo
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
- 1 cup Bell Pepper, diced (various colors)
- 1 cup Sweet Onion, diced
- 10 ounce package Yellow Rice
- 2 ½ cups Chicken Stock (I use Better Than Bouillon)
- ½ pound Large Shrimp, peeled and deveined
- ½ pound Boneless/Skinless Chicken Breast, cubed in 1/2 inch pieces
- 4 ounces Spanish Chorizo
- ½ pound Live Mussels* (see Recipe Notes)
- ¼ cup White Wine (I use chardonnay)
- ½ cup Spanish Green Olives, halved lengthwise
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Fresh Lemon Wedges for garnish
- Fresh Parsley, chopped for garnish
Instructions
-
In a stock pot or Dutch Oven over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the bell peppers and onions and season with salt and pepper. Cook until soft, about 7-8 minutes.
-
Add in the rice and stir for about 1-2 minutes then pour in the chicken stock. Stir and raise the temperature to high. Bring it to a boil then reduce the temperature to low. Cover and let cook for 20 minutes.
-
As the vegetables are cooking in step #1, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a 10-12 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the chicken breast and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the liquid runs clear, about 5-8 minutes. Set aside on a plate.
-
In the same skillet, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Cook on both side about 2 minutes on each side, or until there is a little crisp on the shrimp. Set aside as well.
-
Next, crisp the chorizo in the same pan. Heat them for only 1 minute. The pepper fumes will cause you to cough.
-
In another skillet, add the white wine and live mussels* and cover. Allow the mussels to stem for 3-5 minutes. Remove the lid and all the mussels that are open. If there are any that are still close, return the lid and let them steam for another 1-2 minutes. Any that are still closed after this, discard. Only use the ones that open while steaming.
-
Once the rice is done, add in all the meats - chicken, shrimp, chorizo, and 1/2 of the mussels - along with the Spanish olives. Stir well to evenly incorporate everything throughout the dish.
-
When serving, top with fresh parsley, lemon wedges, and the mussels you reserved.
Recipe Notes
Yellow Rice - you can use white rice and add some saffron to make it yellow. Or, since saffron is costly, you can add a teaspoon of turmeric to the rice.
Chicken Stock - I like using this for the flavor. You can use straight water or vegetable stock instead.
Meats - this is where versatility really comes in. You can use pretty much whatever, or none at all. Original Paella was made with rabbit and snails, soooo, I guess it's whatever suits you.
Testing Mussels
It is important that you use only live mussels when cooking, otherwise you can get a stomach illness. But don't worry, testing them is super simple! Here's how to test the mussels to make sure they're alive before cooking.
- Run cold water over the mussels to clean and rinse them.
- The mussels that are completely closed are alive. Set these aside.
- Any that are still open, gently tap them on the counter about 5 times and run them under cold water again. If they close, they're alive.
- Discard any mussels that remain open. These are dead.
