| Weeknight Paella By Patti Anastasia |
One-pot meals are a great way to beat the “what’s for dinner?” blues. One of my favorite weeknight one-pot meals is paella. There’s a bit of
prep work to prepare this, but then it simmers on the stove while you do something else. You get a tasty, delicious meal and very little
cleanup.
Paella is a Spanish dish of rice, meat, seafood, and vegetables. This version of paella uses some ingredients that you may not be familiar
with: chorizo, saffron, and arborio rice.
The chorizo (or chourico) found locally is a Portuguese smoked pork sausage seasoned with vinegar, paprika, and garlic. If your store does
not carry chorizo, you can substitute linguica or even kielbasa. If there is a Spanish market nearby, try some authentic Spanish chorizo. You
need only a few ounces of chorizo; freeze rest for later.
Saffron is a spice derived from the stigma of the saffron crocus flower. It gives food a rich golden color. Saffron’s taste is described as bitter
and its fragrance as hay-like. It’s used in small amounts. If you can’t find saffron, you can substitute tumeric for the golden color, however,
tumeric doesn’t have the flavor of saffron.
Arborio rice is a short-grain, pearl-like Italian white rice that is high in starch. Arborio rice is the rice used for risotto. The high starch content
of Arborio rice gives dishes a creamy consistency. Let’s take a trip to Spain for dinner with this delicious one-pot meal.
Serves 4
1 teaspoons olive oil
3/4 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teasp. freshly ground black pepper, divided
1/3 cup chopped Spanish chorizo sausage
2 3-ounce boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5-ounce can Delmonte petite cut diced tomatoes, undrained
2 teaspoons capers, drained
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
2/3 cup Arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup frozen green peas
1 bottled roasted red pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Add shrimp
to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until shrimp are done. Place shrimp in a bowl. Add chorizo to pan, cook for 1 minute or until browned. Add chorizo
to bowl.
Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Add chicken to pan, and cook for 2 minutes on each side or until
browned. Add onion and garlic to pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the tomato, capers, and saffron; cook 1
minute. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, rice, wine, and broth to pan; bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender.
Add shrimp and peas to pan. Cover and cook 5 minutes until shrimp and peas are heated through. Remove from heat, and stir in red
peppers and cilantro. Let stand 3 minutes.
Per Serving: 392 Calories; 12g Fat (30.3% calories from fat); 32g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber.
Patti Anastasia is a personal chef based in Londonderry, NH. She solves your “what’s for dinner?” dilemma. Patti is a member of the
Personal Chefs Network and was named PCN’s Personal Chef of the Year in 2007 and New Personal Chef of the Year in 2004. You can
reach Patti at 603-818-9991 or at http://www.AnastasiasTable.com.
prep work to prepare this, but then it simmers on the stove while you do something else. You get a tasty, delicious meal and very little
cleanup.
Paella is a Spanish dish of rice, meat, seafood, and vegetables. This version of paella uses some ingredients that you may not be familiar
with: chorizo, saffron, and arborio rice.
The chorizo (or chourico) found locally is a Portuguese smoked pork sausage seasoned with vinegar, paprika, and garlic. If your store does
not carry chorizo, you can substitute linguica or even kielbasa. If there is a Spanish market nearby, try some authentic Spanish chorizo. You
need only a few ounces of chorizo; freeze rest for later.
Saffron is a spice derived from the stigma of the saffron crocus flower. It gives food a rich golden color. Saffron’s taste is described as bitter
and its fragrance as hay-like. It’s used in small amounts. If you can’t find saffron, you can substitute tumeric for the golden color, however,
tumeric doesn’t have the flavor of saffron.
Arborio rice is a short-grain, pearl-like Italian white rice that is high in starch. Arborio rice is the rice used for risotto. The high starch content
of Arborio rice gives dishes a creamy consistency. Let’s take a trip to Spain for dinner with this delicious one-pot meal.
Serves 4
1 teaspoons olive oil
3/4 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teasp. freshly ground black pepper, divided
1/3 cup chopped Spanish chorizo sausage
2 3-ounce boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5-ounce can Delmonte petite cut diced tomatoes, undrained
2 teaspoons capers, drained
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
2/3 cup Arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup frozen green peas
1 bottled roasted red pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Add shrimp
to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until shrimp are done. Place shrimp in a bowl. Add chorizo to pan, cook for 1 minute or until browned. Add chorizo
to bowl.
Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Add chicken to pan, and cook for 2 minutes on each side or until
browned. Add onion and garlic to pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the tomato, capers, and saffron; cook 1
minute. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, rice, wine, and broth to pan; bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender.
Add shrimp and peas to pan. Cover and cook 5 minutes until shrimp and peas are heated through. Remove from heat, and stir in red
peppers and cilantro. Let stand 3 minutes.
Per Serving: 392 Calories; 12g Fat (30.3% calories from fat); 32g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber.
Patti Anastasia is a personal chef based in Londonderry, NH. She solves your “what’s for dinner?” dilemma. Patti is a member of the
Personal Chefs Network and was named PCN’s Personal Chef of the Year in 2007 and New Personal Chef of the Year in 2004. You can
reach Patti at 603-818-9991 or at http://www.AnastasiasTable.com.
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listings of Restaurants, Weddings, Female doctors and Hotels. It also includes a number of informational pages with links, articles and RSS feeds
to both local and national websites of interest to women in NH & n. MA.
applaud local women. The core of the magazine is our inspirational women's articles, most of which feature local women but occasionally we are
able to interview national women who we feel provide a unique inspiration for our readers. Our other articles cover topics of interest such as food
recipes, home, garden, beauty, health, fashion, dating, parenting, seniors, finance, business, hair care, skin care, advice, real estate, insurance,
weddings etc. Each issue has a feature section as well. Many of our articles are written by local business people who provide information
relevant to their business expertise. The Applaud Women website is also a resource center for local women including the most comprehensive
listings of Restaurants, Weddings, Female doctors and Hotels. It also includes a number of informational pages with links, articles and RSS feeds
to both local and national websites of interest to women in NH & n. MA.
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