Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People

Dear Paella, I am happy to know you on an intimate level now. This weekend was my first time having it prepared at home. It’s important that I document the amount of ease there was in prepping and creating this recipe. Hello to Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People.

Because I work with busy professionals who might have limited access to easy recipes that are great on taste, I am sharing this incredibly delicious Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People that my hardworking readers will love.

My love affair with paella first began during my trip to Spain in 2007. My friend Miriam and I decided to celebrate our newly acquired post-student life with a graduation trip to Madrid. We stayed in the city center and explored the museums, the nightlife, and most importantly, the food scene! Knowing that Spain is the home of paella, having this dish was very much on our bucket list. For historical sake, I make note that the dish was developed in the Spanish city of Valencia, not Barcelona or Madrid. Furthermore, most Spaniards say the best and most authentic paella still comes from Valencia!

Introduction to Paella Valenciana

Finding a restaurant in Madrid that made paella valenciana was super important to us. We’d read some not-so-great stories in Trip Advisor about pre-cooked versions of paella. We didn’t want that experience! Luckily, our hotel pointed me and Miriam in the right direction in where to get the most authentic version.

To say the flavor overwhelmed me (in the best type of way) is an understatement. At that time in my life, I still ate meat from mammals. I happily enjoyed the chorizo sausage, crisped chicken thigh, rabbit meat, and seafood ensconced in saffron, rice, and traditional seasonings. It blew me away! I made my way back to the states thinking I’d never have another paella experience like that again unless I traveled back to Spain.

Fast forward 14 years and I am now dating a gentleman from Madrid, Spain. I’d been asking him for months to make us traditional paella for dinner. Unbeknownst to him, I purchased a paella pan, paella rice, saffron, and all the trimmings for his Christmas gift and showed up on his doorstep with it. I wanted to bring him a “piece of home” and also selfishly get my paella fix quenched after for 14 long years. His approach to making paella, he explained, was passed down by his mother and grandmother.

The only change in this current recipe was that the seafood stock wasn’t made from scratch the way his family makes it. Making your own seafood stock could add on an extra 20 minutes. For example, I bought this boxed fish stock from Sur La Table for the sake of time – ANETO 100% NATURAL COOKING BASE FOR SEAFOOD PAELLA. Remember, this is a recipe for busy people. So, here we go…

Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Paella pan (15″ recommended for family size, up to 6 people)
• 1 clove garlic (chopped)
• 1 large yellow onion (diced)
• 3 cups seafood stock ( Sur La Table, Whole Foods, etc)
• 1 large tomato (diced)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 pinch of saffron threads
• 1 lbs mussels
• 1/2 lb clams
• 1 lb shrimp
• 1/2 lb squid tubes and tentacles
• 2.5 cups rice (aim for paella rice when you can; if not then any short-grain rice)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• sea salt to taste

Here’s how to make it:

• simmer the seafood stock first in a separate sauce pan
• in the paella pan, sauté the chopped onion and olive oil and stir a few minutes on medium heat
• add in the garlic, tomato, sea salt, paprika, and saffron next until the oil is sizzling for 2-3 minutes
• add in the squid next and stir it in to the mix for 1-2 minutes
• next add in the rice and stir in also- make sure to spread evenly across the pan (it will puff up over time)
• slowly pour in the seafood stock next and reduce the heat to low-med heat, without stirring- cook for 10 minutes
• carefully add in the rest of your seafood next- start with the shrimp, then clams and mussels – cook for another 10 minutes (no need to stir)
• when the stock fully evaporates, you’ll hear a tiny cracking sound from the pan; this means the rice at the bottom has blackened (aka the socarrat which is a good thing)
• once the rice is cooked, you are ready to serve your meal
• remove from heat and serve into plates straight from the pain (add lemons for extra effect!)

You will fall in love with this Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People

To the busy people scrolling this recipe, I promise you’ll fall in love with this pan of rice. The seafood (or meat or veggies depending on your preference) is the icing on top. Each time you make it, you will get better and better at cooking it. Also, once you get yourself a nice paella pan (they range from $19-40) and nice selection of saffron, the biggest time will come from picking up the seafood items from your neighborhood grocery store. The meal prep takes 10 minutes and the cooking itself is about 25-30 minutes.

This Seafood Paella Made Easy for Busy People is something to celebrate and enjoy. What seemed like a difficult and intimidating dish to make, actually is now one I look forward to making more of. To be clear, I still dream of eating again in Spain someday. Though, in the meantime… I’ll be happily and quickly making it stateside. Please feel free to share your experiences of making it with me.

XOXO, Natasha