a typical Valencian paella. During the two years I spent living in Spain, I learned how to prepare paella, a dish that originated in Valencia. Since I couldn’t find anything on this site that even came close to being real, I though I’d offer this recipe for anyone interested in trying a taste of Spain. You will first and foremost require a paellera, which is a particular paella pan. You’ll be happy you bought the particular pan once you taste this, I promise.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs |
| Servings: | 8 |
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ (4 pound) whole chicken, cut into 6 pieces
- ½ (2 pound) rabbit, cleaned and cut into pieces
- 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
- 1 medium tomato, finely chopped
- 1 (15.5 ounce) can butter beans
- ½ (10 ounce) package frozen green peas
- ½ (10 ounce) package frozen green beans
- 1 teaspoon mild paprika, or to taste
- 6 cups water, or as needed
- salt to taste
- 1 pinch saffron threads, or to taste
- 1 pinch dried thyme, or to taste
- 1 pinch dried rosemary, or to taste
- 3 cups short-grain white rice, or as needed
Instructions
- Heat a paella pan over medium-high heat, and coat with olive oil. Add chicken, rabbit, and garlic; cook and stir until nicely browned. Move the browned meat to the sides of the pan, and add tomato, butter beans, peas, and green beans. Season with paprika, and mix well.
- Fill the paella pan almost to the top with water, measuring the water as you add it so you can determine the amount of rice to add later. Bring to a boil. Simmer for about 1 hour to make a nice broth.
- Season with a generous amount of salt, just enough saffron for a yellow color, thyme, and rosemary. Stir in half as much rice as the amount of water added to the pan. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.
- Rabbit can be very hard to find so you can just use a whole chicken instead. It also may be easier to use boneless chicken but then you don’t get any fun extras, like hearts and livers. If you do use the hearts and livers, don’t put them in until later as they cook very fast. They will however add a nice flavor to the rest of the dish.
- To account for personal preferences, the seasonings are intended to be added to taste. Add just enough saffron to make a nice yellow color. Season with thyme and rosemary if desired. The goal is to make a rich-tasting broth that will soak into the rice to make it delicious. Since paella pans come in different sizes, water and rice measurements are left open for modifications as well.
- I like to use bomba, Valencia, or arboria rice.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 783 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 87 g |
| Cholesterol | 82 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 5 g |
| Protein | 34 g |
| Saturated Fat | 9 g |
| Sodium | 328 mg |
| Sugars | 2 g |
| Fat | 31 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
We didn’t have a paella pan, so we made it in a Ninja cooker. For my first time making paella, I think it turned out pretty good.
I would put a little more salt on the recipe.
I made mine with chicken thighs as we do not eat rabbit and marinated my chicken in the morning. I really enjoyed it and so did my family. Will definitely make it again.
This is a very good recipe. I invested in a paella pan just to make this. I used rabbit and bone-in chicken thighs . I used one 10 oz bag of frozen mixed vegetables for the green beans and peas. I definitely didn’t use enough salt, unfortunately. My sons and daughter in law and grandson loved it
Loved it! I happened to read this recipe & decided to make it. I had to make some changes since I didn’t plan for it. I used one can each of drained black beans, stewed tomatoes, green beans, & peas. I dumped drained green beans & peas on top the last 10 minutes of cooking. Also, I used 2 T minced garlic in water & Mexican saffron (safflower). For meat : skin-on chicken, venison sausage, & Luling, TX smoked sausage. I also used a Calphanon 1392-12 frying pan of which the nonstick coating has flaked off the bottom surface. It came out beautifully! My husband says this recipe is a keeper!
Most of the ingredients are close. I have family in Valencia and just returned from spending a few weeks. Valencia paella is a rice centered dish meaning the rice and the preparation of the rice is the most important part of the recipe. Short grained rice, like arborio, should be used. In paella a wood fire is typically used. Higher heat in the start to cook the meat lower heat in the end to finish the rice. This recipe gives you similar ingredients but not the technique to make Valencia paella.
???? Not sure about this recipe – where are all the shellfish like clams, mussels, etc. that appear in the picture and not in the ingredients list. Good recipe, but incomplete.
Your picture looks like it has mussels in it. When do they get added, I don’t see them on your ingredient list
Your picture looks like it has mussels in it. When do they get added, I don’t see them on your ingredient list
We made this last night for a group of friends – it’s fantastic! If you have leftovers, I highly recommend using them for breakfast by doing a high heat skillet (not the paella pan) and a pressed amount of the paella for a few minutes. Remove, add a hot sauce of your choosing and – blam! instant, delicious breakfast.
am i able to replace the rabbit for something else? im suggesting spanish chorizo
I made it all seafood and all chicken as well. Sooooo goood!!!
I tried this dish and it was as good as many others on this site. And I don’t use a Paella pan but instead a shallow stew pot.
GREAT AND YUMMY RECIPE! if you like original paella in www.paellafromvalencia.com you have others original paella recipes and much more, enjoy it! www.originalpaella.com
Excellent recipe. I lived in Spain, and am of Spanish decent (parents both born in Spain). I live in USA now and can’t find rabbit. When I make paella valenciana I use more chicken, add some jamón serrano which really gives it a delicious taste. I know they don’t do that in Spain, but we love the taste. Also add artichokes, butter beans, and green beans. This paella is my favorite of all, but I also love paella a banda. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
This recipe is almost 100% right-on with the official recipe of Paella Valenciana promoted by the Artesanal Association of Valencia. You can’t get more authentic than that. Great work. Try it people it is really good.
Good recipe, but with one recommendation. Original recipes for paella don’t use garlic. One can, it doesn’t hurt. My rule of thumb is, if your actually using Spanish saffron or any other good grade (Turkish, Persian, but not Thai), don’t use garlic. It overwhelms the taste of the saffron, and the stuff costs too much to do that. Never use a good saffron with garlic. I have a stash of what was a 10 gram box I bought in Grenada. If you are ever in Granada, go over to “la plaza de la catedral” when the spice vendors are there. There is no better or cheaper place to buy it.
I agree with omitting the peas & I prefer frozen haricot verts. I would also suggest visiting The Spanish Table for your paella pan (or many other needs). Awesome store! If you’re ever in Santa Fe- worth a visit!
I make my paella without even peeling the garlic, and I also like to use green beans and red pepper. I also put slices of hard-boiled egg to decorate it when it’s done. Also, instead of rabbit, I use Spanish chorizo.
I followed recipe exactly. The rice was outstanding but the meat was disappointingly bland. I don’t care about the recipe’s authenticity but if you want a good dish, leave out the chicken and use the whole rabbit.
Not hard to cook, but takes planning, makes a LOT of food