I did this on the weekend, first time cooked & the first time Iv'e eaten Paella.....It won't be the last,
Mine was missing Mussels & Safron but it was still good.



INGREDIENTS

1kg clams
1 tablespoon coarse salt
1kg medium uncooked prawns
1kg small blue mussels
1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil
1.5 litres (6 cups) chicken or fish stock
1 large pinch saffron threads
4 (440g) chicken thigh fillets, chopped coarsely
400g chorizo sausage, sliced
2 large (600g) red onions, chopped
2 medium (400g) red capsicums, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
4 medium (720g) tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped finely
3 cups (600g) Calasperra (or short grain) rice
2 cups (250g) frozen peas
¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

NOTE: The traditional pan for this recipe is shallow and wide. If you don't have a paella pan or a large enough frying pan, use two smaller frying pans as the mixture should only be about 4cm deep. This recipe is best made just before serving and can be cooked on the barbecue or across two or three gas burners or hotplates on the stove.
METHOD

Rinse the clams under cold water and place them in a large bowl. Sprinkle the clams with the salt, cover with cold water and soak for 2 hours to purge them of any grit. Drain and rinse.

Shell and devein prawns, leaving tails intact. Reserve shells. Scrub mussels and remove the beards.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan; add prawn shells, cook, stirring, until browned. Add chicken or fish stock, bring to the boil; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve into a jug or bowl; add saffron to the liquid.

Heat another 1 tablespoon of the oil in a 45cm paella pan or a non-stick frying pan, add the chicken and cook until browned all over; remove the chicken from the pan. Add the chorizo to the same pan and cook until browned on both sides; drain chorizo on absorbent paper.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in paella pan, add onion, capsicum, garlic, paprika and tomatoes; cook, stirring, until soft.

Add the rice and stir to coat in mixture. Add the chicken and chorizo to the pan with the stock and saffron mixture, and stir only until combined. Do not stir again. Bring to boil then simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes or until the rice is almost tender.

Sprinkle the peas over the rice; place the clams, prawns and mussels evenly over the surface of the paella. Cover the pan with large sheets of foil and simmer, covered, for 5-10 minutes or until clams and mussels have opened and the prawns are just cooked through. (Cooking time depends on eveness of heat under pan. It can be useful to rotate the pan during cooking so heat spreads evenly.)

Sprinkle with parsley, serve immediately.


http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee104/billybushcook/junelongweekend09Paella2.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee104/billybushcook/junelongweekend09Paella.jpg

Mick.

Speechless..................(again)

KD

Looks good enough to eat!  Rice is nice to work with.

If you have a 12" Bedourie spun steel CO, then the lid is almost an exact match for a large Paella pan, albiet the sides on the Bedourie are a bit steeper.

cheers

BillyBushCook wrote on Jun 10^th, 2009 at 8:30am:

Rinse the clams under cold water

BBC where/how did you get the clams?
I have seen cans in supermarkets from the USA and seen 1kg bags of frozen clams in the shell somewhere recently.
Just wondering what your source was.

I think a few Kinkawooka Boston Bay mussels in the shell would go nicely in this:
www.kinkawooka.com.au

Re pics, looks like seafood extender with the pink edges, what is it?
Lodge 17" or Cabela's 20" skillets would handle this nicely on a BBQ me thinks.

Might have a crack at this.  Will need some planning and shopping.
Thanks Mick.

KD

That reads fantastic BBC.  For me I would delete clams and mussels although traditionally thats incorrect and maybe add more prawns and some tassie scallops.

I use a 30cm caste iron frying pan to make mine .
Do the sauce bit , let it simmer for a while , not too thick , remember some water will come from the seafood
add previously cooked chicken meat ( the odd underground mutton)and then raw seafood and bring back to the simmer , with very low coals ( grey , no red )

Then scatter the arborio rice evenly across the pan and very low simmer for about 15 minutes ( no stirring , no glug )

as close as the original Spaniards ( who don't use sea food , maybe the odd snail ) do it.

I use a 30cm caste iron frying pan to make mine .
Do the sauce bit , let it simmer for a while , not too thick , remember some water will come from the seafood
add previously cooked chicken meat ( the odd underground mutton)and then raw seafood and bring back to the simmer , with very low coals ( grey , no red )

Then scatter the arborio rice evenly across the pan and very low simmer for about 15 minutes ( no stirring , no glug )

as close as the original Spaniards ( who don't use sea food , maybe the odd snail ) do it.

Love your recipe Billy