For busy week nights, it’s nice to have a few dishes in your back pocket that come together quick, use only one pan, and act as protein, main dish & side dish all together. Paella is one of those things for me, and I love how versatile it is.
Paella is traditionally a seafood dish, made with shrimp, clams, mussels, squid – really any number of things a fisherman might have left over from trying to sell the day’s catch. But for my kids, they’re keen on chicken, and I always toss a few clams in or myself.
Chicken & Sausage Paella
An easy dinner made in one pan that eats as a complete meal all by itself. Also it's super good.
Servings: 8
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 pasilla pepper (or green bell pepper) chopped
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 links Spanish chorizo (or smoked sausage) sliced
- 3 boneless skinless chicken thighs diced
- 1.5 Tbsp smoked paprika
- 1-2 tsp saffron threads
- 3 cups medium grain rice Spanish Bomba, or Italian Arborio
- 14oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 cup clam juice
- 3.5 cups chicken stock unsalted
- 1 medium lemon cut into 6 wedges, seeds removed
- 1 lb clams little neck or Venus
- 1/2 cup Italian parsley roughly chopped
- olive oil
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Place your cast iron skillet or paella pan on medium heat. Add about 2 Tbsp olive oil and bring to temperature. Add the onion, peppers, garlic, and a couple pinches of salt and black pepper. Saute until the onions begin to turn transluscent.
- Add another 2 tsps of olive oil. Then add the sausage and chicken, cook until the chicken is almost cooked through. Add the paprika and saffron, season again with a few pinches of salt and pepper and toss together.
- Add the rice, stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes, clam juice and chicken stock. Stir together, season again with salt and pepper and add the lemons.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and cover. Simmer 5-10 minutes, then add the clams and cover again. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until all water is absorbed. Let sit for 5 minutes, then add the parsley on top. Serve warm and enjoy!
13 COMMENTS
PJ
12 months ago
I am Latina and I’m not offended by this dish being called a Paella. It’s nice to see different adaptations of dishes from around the world to fit your specific dietary needs/restrictions. I’m going to try this later on this week! I love how the rice is perfectly cooked (which to me is when you see each individual grain). I’ll report back how mine turned out :)
Jessica
12 months ago
I will be making this tonight – Chris’ recipes never disappoint!
Linda
12 months ago
Looks gorgeous…and delicious!
Katie
12 months ago
Isn’t Julia grain free? Im also grain free and I’d love to see a version of this recipe with some sort of norgrain – like cauliflower rice and how it changes the recipe.
Chris
12 months ago
AUTHORWhen I make this for Jules, I cook all the ingredients in a pan together, the cauliflower rice in a separate pan, and just toss them together before serving. That helps get rid of any excess moisture and gives the final dish its best texture.
Lindsay
12 months ago
Well I don’t care what is right or wrong about the name of this recipe, it looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it! I’ve wanted a different kind of recipe to make for Valentine’s Day- this is perfect! Thank you ❤️
Nani
12 months ago
Paella is also made with chicken in certain areas of spain. And also, “mar y Tierra” which is a mix of see food with chicken.
Your paella looks yummy but is not the traditional from Spain, it is very Americanized!
Julia
12 months ago
Sounds like there’s a lot variations around the world.
María
12 months ago
This must be American paella! Not Spanish for sure! Sausage? Sorry guys I am very supportive with everything you do but… this is a no no! 😂😂😂😅😅 i can send you the real recipe if you want me to! Or… just translate the recipe from a Spanish website! 🙏🙏🙏🙏 but this is like burning our flag in the middle of a square. 😢😢
Julia
12 months ago
This is a great, easy, and sure, Americanized version, of Paella.
Maria
12 months ago
I don’t mean it in a bad way, although my heart is aching 😅💔 I hope I instilled in you the curiosity to try the real thing. It’s even easier. I promise!
There is a guy on ig Ilovepaella.jm he ships the ingredients from Spain if you want to have a look (and you go to Jamaica) 😂😂
In the meantime enjoy your rice 😜
Laura
12 months ago
Your comment is so overwrought. No, this is not a traditional Spanish paella (most telling is the use of a dish that’s too deep and and too heavy-bottomed to achieve a good socarrat), but it’s a fairly typical Americanized version. There’s nothing new about rice dishes like this being referred to as “paella” in the US. Share some helpful tips or links to different recipes (or a link to a good paella pan), but your metaphor about flag-burning is patently absurd.
Susan
12 months ago
I love Chrus’s simple americanized version but would also love your authentic s pi anish version if you donot mind sharing!