Gluten-Free One Pot Chicken Chorizo Paella

This 20 minute, one-pot Spanish rice dish is full of succulent chicken and chorizo and will be a new family favourite! It's also naturally gluten-free and dairy-free, too!

Yield: 6 to 8
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Gluten-Free 20 Minute Chicken Chorizo Paella

This paella recipe will be a new family favourite; I guarantee! You won't believe how tasty and how it quickly it is prepared, either! If there are three things most kids love, it's chicken, rice and sausages. This classic Spanish dish features all three; plus, it's the kind of thing that, after you make it the first time, you'll be able to make it with your eyes closed!

There are a few secrets you should take into consideration before making this dish:

1. Use boneless and skinless chicken thighs--they are much more juicy than breasts and will cook faster
2. Use a good chorizo, one that you would happily eat on its own
3. Don't be shy with the saffron and the smoked paprika--they really make the dish what it is
4. Don't be afraid to swap out or add in ingredients that you'd like to eat
5. If you can't find paella rice, you can use risotto rice or simply white long grain rice 
6. Do not stir the paella while cooking; a nice crunchy crust will form on the bottom and the edges that will be to die for. Your kids will probably turn up their noses and complain that it's burnt. Let them. There'll be more for you to savour; no sense wasting the goods on fussy eaters; it'll be our little secret

Ingredients:

For the paella
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 lemon, halved
1 garlic clove, minced
2 bay leaves
130 grams chorizo, diced
150 grams frozen peas
300 grams white long grain rice*
400ml chicken stock
750 grams chicken thighs, boneless and skinless, cut
a few strands saffron
fresh parsley
sea salt (optional)
black pepper

*Note:  You can use paella rice, but it'll take longer to cook.

Need a conversion? Use this handy chart.

How to Make Quick Chicken Chorizo Paella

Whenever we go to Spain, there are two things we live off of: delicious paella and ice cold sangria. Paella in Spain is so tasty and varied--you'll find some with nothing but seafood plucked straight from the warm Mediterranean or you'll find some full of a variety of meat. I'm not naieve enough to believe that my homemade, 20 minute quickie even comes close to what the authentic dish tastes like, but it is a close second and a nice treat when we're home and dreaming of Spain's sunny weather!

Instructions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the onion and garlic until fragrant and the onion is translucent.
2. Add the rice and mix well to toast it. Add the bell pepper and allow to sizzle for about a minute.
3. Pour in the chicken stock, chicken thighs, chorizo, saffron, paprika and bay leaf and cover, leaving to simmer and allowing the liquid to absorb. This should take about 20 minutes. *Important tip: try not to stir the paella; you want a nice crunchy crust to form on the bottom to make it as authentic as possible.*
4. Once most of the liquid has absorbed, finish with a good squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of fresh parsley. Season with pepper and sea salt if necessary.