I got this bright and bubbly cookbook - Poh's Kitchen for Christmas from my gorgeous man (along with some sparkly jewellery!).
For those that don't know who Poh is, she was the runner up in last year's Masterchef and has her own cooking show.
Poh cooks alongside other famous chefs and the book is full of her own and their recipes, her cute stories and humour and colourful illustrations and pictures. I just adore her mix match of tea sets and bowls too. Definitely a book for the girls in the kitchen!
I made the paella last night as I'm on a mission to find the perfect paella like the many we tasted on our Spanish holiday.
This would be a great dish to make with friends coming over, just put the pan on the table and everyone dishes out their own, together with a glass of Spanish red wine you'll have yourself a merry little evening in!
This would be a great dish to make with friends coming over, just put the pan on the table and everyone dishes out their own, together with a glass of Spanish red wine you'll have yourself a merry little evening in!
Paella
Serves 10-12
Large pinch of saffron strands
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
250g chorizo or other spicy sausage in bite-size pieces500g skinless chicken thigh fillets cut into 2-3 cm pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 capsicums (1 red, 1 green or yellow), cut into strips
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
2-3 tsp smoked paprika (or ordinary paprika powder)
1 bay leaf
3 cups medium grain rice
4 cups chicken stock
12 green prawns in shells
12 mussells
400g white fish cut into bite size pieces
1 cup frozen peas (optional)
Immerse the saffron in a couple of tablespoons of boiling water for five minutes.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and partly cook the chirozo for a few minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until browned. It doesn't need to be cooked right through at this stage. Add the onion, capsicum, garlic, tomatoes, paprika and bay leaf and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add the rice and stir for a couple of minutes. Pour in the stock and saffron liquid (discard the saffron strands) and add enough water to cover the rice by 1cm. Cover with foil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the liquid is almost absorbed.
Meanwhile rinse and drain the prawns in cold water. Scrub and de-beard the mussels in cold water, and discard any that have opened or are cracked.
Dot the prawns, mussels and fish over the rice mixture. The frozen peas may be added at this time. Cook for a further 10 minutes, or until the seafood is just cooked. Discard any mussels that have not opened.
PS: You need to use a large flat based pan so it cooks evenly, a frying pan works fine.
PPS: Once you remove the foil, don't stir it again, as a good paella should develop a crust on the bottom.
PPPS: This recipe would be delicious without the seafood, the chirozo and chicken are filling enough as the dish should be all about the rice.
PPPPS: For more colour be as generous as you can afford with the saffron.
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I didn't realize a good paella had a crust on the bottom. I definitely want to try this recipe though. I bought saffron a long time ago, but I'm scared to use it because it's so expensive. I keep using turmeric instead, so the saffron just sits in the pantry. hehe
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