Paella Recipe

Since it varies a lot with my mood, I’m going to give you the flexible recipe:

2 C of Arborio rice (short grain)
3 C of water +/-
3 C of stock
Saffron to taste (you don’t need much)
Veggies (and or beans)
Meats
Olive oil

Process:
Cook the meats you have selected and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a pan, then add the raw rice. Stir the rice constantly until it becomes opaque.
Add the stock and vegetables, and cook uncovered adding water as necessary.
Before adding the last cup of water add the meat back in.
It is finished when 1) the rice is no longer crunchy, and 2) a little bit of the rice is getting browned to the bottom of the pan.

Variations:
Rice: in Telluride, I used the prepackaged “Saffron Rice” that they sell in the grocery store. The disadvantage is that the long grain rice was hard to cook all the way through.

Stock: I usually use chicken stock if I am cooking meat and seafood stock if I’m cooking seafood. I also like to add “tomato stock” which you can find in the Mexican food isle.

Meats: This is where the variety really begins. I’ve added meat balls, chicken bits, shrimp, muscles, calamari, lamb, chicken wings, etc.

The traditional Spanish meat balls have pine nuts in them. I like to make Italian meatballs w/Italian seasonings and garlic or Greek with mint and oregano.

If you add seafood, it will taste terrible the next day, so you shouldn’t make too much.

Veggies: I add peppers, artichoke hearts, onions, lima beans, butter beans and green beans.