Spanish Paella

There are tons of variations of this dish. Feel free to add or delete ingredients to your taste.

6 cups chicken broth (strong)
1 onion, peeled but left whole
1 t saffron

Place these first 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Set aside.

6 - 8 chicken pieces, legs, thighs or breasts cut in half
olive oil
3 bell peppers chopped - any combination of red, green, yellow or orange.
2 onions, chopped
5 cloves of garlic - minced or put through a garlic press
1 lb sausage - any kind you like, Italian or Chorizo, cut into bite sized pieces
3 cups paella rice (short grain) or if you don't have it I like plain old Uncle Ben's
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup white wine
seafood of choice - I like shrimp, mussels, clams and catfish - cleaned 1/2 to 1 lb each
1 lb frozen peas
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/2 bunch chopped green onions
lemons for garnish

Salt and pepper the chicken pieces and brown with olive oil in a large dutch oven or wok until brown on all sides - 7 - 8 minutes per side. Set aside on a plate - chicken does not need to be cooked through at this point.

Add a little more olive oil to the pan and sauté the peppers and onions until soft. Add the garlic and sausage and cook until sausage is browned. Add rice and stir until coated with oil. Add bay leaves, 5 1/2 cups of the chicken stock and 1/2 cup white wine. Add about 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. This amount depends on how salty your broth is. Push the chicken pieces into the rice along with the catfish, and any seafood that needs a little while to cook. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the frozen peas, shrimp and other shellfish and cook for 10 more minutes or until the shrimp is pink and the shells have opened for the clams and mussels. Remove from heat and stir in parsley and green onions.

Serve with lemon for garnish. Take out the bay leaves before you eat it. Goes well with crusty bread and a green salad.

This can be finished in the oven at 350 degrees instead of the stove if you have a short flat paella pan.

Enjoy!