Spicy Paella

This recipe is bursting with flavor. How can you go wrong with andouille sausage, shrimp, hot chiles, cumin, cilantro and lime....and that's only a partial line up.

Course Main Course Seafood

Cuisine Spanish

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 40

resting time 10

Servings

Calories 276kcal

Author Lea Ann Brown

Ingredients

For The Broth:
1 dried chile pepper New Mexican, arbol or Pasilla
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 clove garlic peeled and minced
2 Cups chicken broth
For The Sofrito
2 tablespoons Neutral oil Canola or vegetable oil work well here.
1 cup red bell pepper chopped, about 1 red bell pepper
1 cups sweet onion chopped, apx. 1 medium onion
1 cups zucchini sliced, about 1 medium small zucchini
1 cup canned diced tomatoes undrained
½ teaspoon hot smoked paprika
1 Tablespoon Tomato paste
¼ teaspoon salt
3 garlic cloves peeled, minced
1 cup rice uncooked, or short grain rice like Valencia or also called Bomba rice.
For The Paella:
½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
⅛ cup fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 pound large shrimp peeled and deveined. You can leave the tails on if you'd like
4 ounces smoked andouille sausage (fully cooked) cut into ½-inch pieces. About 1 link
½ cup frozen corn
4 lime wedges
1 Teaspoon Sherry vinegar

Instructions

Prepare the Broth: Remove stem and seeds from dried chile pepper. Just shake the seeds out of the pepper. Combine the chile, cumin, cinnamon, garlic, and broth in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer (do not boil). Keep warm over low heat.
Make the sofrito: Heat oil in a large fry pan or paella pan over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add bell pepper and onion, and sauté 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add zucchini; sauté 5 minutes. Stir garlic and cook until fragrant. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, paprika and salt. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add rice; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly to toast the rice.
Prepare spice blend, combine cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and set aside.
To prepare paella, peel and devein shrimp, leaving tails intact if you'd like. Pat shrimp dry. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and saute 2 minutes. Add sausage and cook one more minute to heat through. Remove the sausage and shrimp to a plate, so the shrimp will not continue to cook.
Remove the chile pepper from the broth. Stir broth, cilantro, lime, oil mix and corn into the sofrito in the pan. Cook 15 minutes, uncovered, resisting the urge to stir. You'd like to achieve a crust on the rice. Add sausage and cook 5-10 more minutes, or until rice is tender.
Remove from heat. Stir in a splash of Sherry Vinegar (optional) Arrange shrimp in the paella. Cover with a towel, and let stand 10 minutes. Serve with lime wedges.

Notes

Pro Tip: Take the time to find and purchase Sherry Vinegar. Sherry Vinegar is aged vinegar made from sherry wine. It has a distinct rich flavor and will tame the acidity of the tomatoes and add bright flavor. Sherry vinegar is available in most grocery stores, though specialty stores will provide a better selection of higher quality sherry vinegars.

A special paella pan does not need to be used for this recipe. Use a heavy bottomed 13 inch fry pan with sloped sides or a Carbon steel fry pan.

Serve paella with a Spanish side dish such as: Fennel Orange Salad.

Nutrition