From: woquinoncoin	Date: September 8th, 2008 01:47 am (UTC)		(Link)

... and we all know how much you hate Christmas.

I miss your paella.
I've said that before.
Do you have a recipe or secret there that you'd care to share?

	From: flanged	Date: September 8th, 2008 02:22 am (UTC)		(Link)

Secret #1 is bijol. Bijol is how you make paella that tastes good and looks right, without spending your entire paycheck on saffron.

I'm getting mom to email me the recipe proper; I'll send it your way once I have it, or post it here, but the quick version:

Chicken
Pepperoni (can use chorizo if you want, I've also made it with chicken andouille sausage)
Rice (Uncle Ben's converted; trust me, type matters)
Chicken stock
Artichoke hearts
Peas
Pimientos
Shrimp (optional)
Clams (optional)
Bijol
Garlic (the minced Spice World stuff is fine)
Oil (canola or some other relatively flavorless one is fine; olive sometimes winds up tasting weird)

Drain the artichoke hearts and pimientos.
Saute the garlic in oil at the bottom of a nice big pot (you're going to cook everything in this).
Brown the chicken in the garlicy oil. Don't need to cook it fully, just enough so you can chop it properly.
Once the chicken is browned, chop the chicken and sausage into smallish chunks (1-2")
Now brown the rice in the oil. Again, you're not so much cooking it as just getting it coated in lovely garlicy oil and browned a bit.

Now dump in everything but the seafood. Artichokes, pimientos, chicken, pepperoni, rice, stock, peas, and bijol. Dump it in, stir it up, let it cook for a while. 10 minutes before it's going to be ready, you'll add shrimp and clams on top; when the shrimp/clams are cooked, the paella is ready.

That's the version without things like amounts and time.

	From: woquinoncoin	Date: September 8th, 2008 02:52 am (UTC)		(Link)

Oh this is awesome. I don't usually have Uncle Ben's or pimientos or bijol or artichoke hearts sitting around the house, but some weekend I will collect the ingredients and give it a go. THANKS!