Recipe courtesy of Robert Gerstenecker. You can read more about Robert on P16 of our Lifestyle Magazine.
Ingredients
- 15 large shrimp (feel free to add clams or mussels)
- 1 lb (450 g) chicken thighs
- 8 cups (1.9 L) chicken stock
- 1 pinch saffron
- ½ cup (120 ml) fresh parsley
- 2 to 3 tbsp (30 to 45 ml) fresh thyme
- 8 oz (225 g) chorizo sausages, sliced bite-size
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 large bell pepper, diced
- 4 plum tomatoes, diced
- 4 tbsp (60 ml) tomato paste
- ½ tbsp (8 ml) paprika
- 1 cup (240 ml) olives, pitted and diced
- 3 cups (710 ml) calasparra rice Â
- 3 lemons, quartered
Instructions
Set the EGG for direct cooking without the convEGGtor at 500°F/260°C.
Peel shrimp, leaving on the tail. Lightly salt the chicken thighs and shrimp. Heat the chicken stock with saffron and herbs; keep hot but not boiling as you cook.
Coat the bottom of a Stir-Fry & Paella Pan with olive oil. Add the pan to the cooking grid and brown the chorizo for 1 or 2 minutes; set aside. Brown the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes; set aside.
Sauté garlic, onion and bell pepper until softened, adding tomatoes shortly before the mixture is finished. Add the tomato paste, paprika and olives; stir in the chicken and chorizo. Add rice, mixing together and stirring one minute. When the rice is slightly translucent add enough chicken stock to cover the whole mixture and lower the EGG temperature to 375°F/191°C.
Stir a few times in the first 10 minutes, adding broth as necessary to keep the rice fully covered. After this let the paella sit and cook another 10-20 minutes, adding broth bit by bit to keep the rice submerged until the rice on the top is al dente. Stir the paella one last time and place the shrimp on top, turning over after 2 to 4 minutes to cook on the other side. Carefully remove the paella from the EGG, cover and let rest for 15-20 minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges.
Serves 6 to 8.
Delicious! A bit of work to tend it but pretty quick and worth it.
How does one lower the temperature on the egg from 500 to 375? My paella would be done (probably burned on the bottom) and half eaten before I could get the temp to drop 100+ degrees.
Just shut down the vents. Especially with a large paella pan, the grill quickly gets below 400 degrees. Even if it does not get there, shutting down the airflow prevents large flames. I would say the last 20 minutes went faster than that, and it was oh soo good.
While I am sure it’s possible to make great paella on the egg, I’ve found it incredibly challenging because the egg heats up so quickly when the lid is open. I have an XL egg, and if I heat it to 500 degrees and begin cooking with the lid open, it’s going to flame and the temp rises quickly, even if I shut the lower vent down. So all props to you for figuring it out.
Really good
At what point do you cover the egg? What size paella pan do you need. I so badly need an educational class, but no one in western NY has one. Help!
Nancy
The egg will be opened and closed through out this process. The main part that you want to keep the lid closed is after the rice is put in and then it cooks for about 10-20 minutes. Big Green Egg sells Paella pans. There is a link to it in this recipe. Most are usually around 15 inches in diameter. Hope this helps and good luck.