How to make the perfect paella step by step

Lose your fear

To get a perfect paella, be it Valencia, seafood, mixed … in addition to following the tips, tricks and recipes that we give you below, the key is to lose your fear, make it not once but more times, adjusting it to your tastes. So lose your respect and get to work!

The secret of the diffuser

If you are going to cook the paella on a gas stove, use a diffuser. This will provide a uniform heat intensity. You also have the option of starting the paella on the gas stove and finishing it in the oven. Or if you are lucky enough to be able to make a wood fire, you will gain that special aroma that this type of cooking gives it.

In paella pan

Rice can be made in a casserole, but we would no longer be talking about a paella but about something else. The paella is made in a paella pan adapted to the number of diners. The diameter must be adapted to the number of diners and the quantity of ingredients. For 4-5 people we would be talking about a 40-45 cm paella pan. For 6-8 people, one of 50 cm.

Rice must be the bomb

Jokes aside, the recommended variety of rice for paella is Bomba rice, since it is very rich in starch and that makes it soak in the flavors of the rest of the ingredients and the result is as tasty as we want.

First thing: sauté the meats

Put olive oil in the paella pan and when it is hot, brown the meats that you are going to use, so that they are sealed and keep their flavor.

The second thing: vegetables

In the same oil in which you have cooked the meats - which you can remove or leave on the edges of the paella pan - fry the vegetables cut into small pieces but more or less of the same measure, so that they are all cooked equally.

Third step: tomato and patience

Add the tomato grated or cut into very small squares and fry over low heat, patiently, to make a good sauce.

Broth and paprika

Add the broth (or water, depending on your recipe), salt, and paprika. Bring it to a boil and when it is done, lower the heat and let it cook over moderate heat 30-45 minutes, so that the meats are tender (if you use free-range chicken, think that you may need a little more time, because they are more meat hard).

The secret of saffron

Forget colorants, saffron gives the paella flavor, color and an unmistakable aroma. Yes, it is a bit expensive, but you only need a few strands that make a difference. Toast the saffron in a pan without oil before adding it to the paella pan just before adding the rice.

The rice, just right

Rice, just right

Raise the fire and, when the broth boils intensely, add the rice and distribute it equally. It should no longer be stirred in the remaining cooking time. After the first 8-10 minutes, reduce the intensity of the fire. Check the salt and cook for 8-10 more minutes. To know that it is already cooked, press a few grains with your fingertips on the edge of a plate, to see if the core of the grain offers a slight resistance.

5 minutes of rest before serving

We know, when you take it out of the fire, you want to sink your teeth into it but … wait 5 minutes. This way you give time for the flavors to settle and be tastier.

The seafood paella recipe

Heat the oil in a paella pan and fry the cuttlefish (300 g clean and chopped) for 5 minutes. Add the peppers (1/2 red and 1 green) and cook for 3 minutes. Set them aside. Add the prawns (12) and the prawns (4), cook for 1 minute on each side and remove them. Add the fried tomato (50 g) and mix well. Add the rice 380 g), toast it for 1 minute, stirring, and flavor the stew with the paprika. Bathe with the boiling water. When it comes to a boil again, season and cook for 15 minutes. Add the shellfish and steamed mussels and cook for 3 minutes. Cover, let stand a few minutes and serve. (For 4 people)

The mixed paella recipe

Sauté the garlic in a paella pan with a thread of oil until they begin to take color. Add the red pepper (100 g) and the green beans (100 g), all clean and cut, and fry for 2 more minutes.
Clean the chicken (150 g) and the rabbit (150 g), wash and dry them. Add them to the paella and, when they brown, add 3 grated tomatoes and sauté. Add the rice (200 g) and toast it for 1 min, stirring. Season, add the saffron threads, add the vegetable stock until covered and cook for 13 minutes. Peel the prawns (4), add them with the steamed mussels and continue cooking for 2 min. Let stand and serve. (For 4 people)

The recipe for chicken paella

Fry the chicken (1/2 cut into eighths) for 15 minutes in a paella pan until golden brown. Then add the beans (150 g), the peas (100 g), the garlic and the red pepper (1/2), and sauté them for 15 minutes, stirring. Add salt and pepper, add the crushed tomato (150 g) and fry it for 10 minutes. Add the saffron. Add the rice (350 g) and pour the boiling water. Cook 18 minutes, until the rice has absorbed the liquid. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest for 2 minutes. (For 4 people)

The recipe for the vegetable paella

Heat a paella over the fire, with a good splash of olive oil, and as soon as it starts to sparkle, add 5 grated tomatoes and 4 chopped garlic and parsley. Sauté, stirring continuously.
At this time, add the red (150 g) and green (100 g) peppers in strips, the 3 artichokes stripped of their leaves and cut into eighths while stirring. Then add the peas (200 g), the garrofones (225 g), the saffron and a pinch of salt. Sauté until the vegetables take color.
Next, add the brown rice (450 g) in the shape of a cross, from the ends of the paella pan, and pour warm water until the exact height of the cross is reached. Stir gently and cook for 30 minutes. Taste and add salt. Let stand 10 minutes. (For 6-8 people)

Also dare with the light version

And so that you do not have excuses to get into the kitchen, we also leave you the recipe for our light paella so that you can choose the option that you like the most. A version of the classic paella with 400 kcal less per serving than the traditional one and no regrets.

If there is a star dish of our gastronomy, that is paella. There are many paellas, but if you want to get a pan (or rice) and wet paella, carefully follow the instructions in our gallery, where we tell you how to do it step by step, with the best tips, tricks and recipes.

THE RICE, THE KEY

The paella may or may not have snails, garrofones, rabbit … depending on whether you make it Valencian, seafood, mixed or as you wish but … it always has rice, otherwise, we are not talking about paella. And the type of rice is key to getting a delicious paella. Forget those rice dishes that promise never to go overboard and choose a good arroz bomba. It absorbs flavors better than other rices because it is rich in starch.

THE FIRE

It is also key to getting a good paella. Let it adjust to the paella pan we use. The ideal is to be able to make the paella in the field, with a good wood fire, but since this is not usually possible, the gas stove or the oven are good alternatives. On the other hand, the glass ceramic or induction would not be so recommended.

With diffuser. If you cook it in the oven, keep in mind that you will need a diffuser of those that adapt to the burner, since it is the only way to distribute the fire correctly so that it reaches the entire paella pan evenly.

Finished in the oven. For this reason, a good alternative is to start the paella on the gas fire and then, once the rice has been added, finish cooking in the oven, which has a constant and homogeneous temperature.

KEY INGREDIENTS

It will depend on the type of paella you are going to make, but as Lourdes March, author of Alianza Editorial's The Book of Paella and Rice , explains , the basics are the following:

Valencian Paella. The basics are extra virgin olive oil, bomba rice, free-range chicken, fresh vegetables (not frozen), saffron, sweet paprika.

Seafood paella. You need extra virgin olive oil, Bomba rice, a good fish broth, crayfish, prawns, squid, mussels, saffron, sweet paprika.

HOW TO MAKE THE BROTH FOR PAELLA

Although many recipes only call for adding water, others are made with different broths. These are the three most common:

Fish soup. Sauté fish bones and shellfish heads. Remove and, in the same oil, fry chopped onion, carrot and celery until they change color. Add clean rockfish, water and boil 20 minutes with half a bay leaf. Strain.
Chicken soup. Sauté bones and chicken wings. Remove and sauté chopped onion, carrot and celery in the same oil. Add chicken carcasses and wings and boil 30 minutes. Strain.
Vegetables soup. Sauté garlic and onion. When they change color add chopped carrot and celery, chopped cabbage, turnip and parsnip. Add water and boil 30 minutes. Strain.

All these tricks can be applied to our light version of paella.