by NWB
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A&M's Testing Notes:
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4
bone-in skin on chicken thighs
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4
small or two large links of Merguez sausage (chorizo is fine if you can't find the lamb sausage)
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1/2
head of cauliflower cut into pieces
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1 teaspoon
caraway, ground
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1 teaspoon
smoked paprika
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1 teaspoon
paprika
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1/2 teaspoon
cumin
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1 tablespoon
harissa
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2 cups
Arborio (or other short grain) rice
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8 ounces
tomato sauce
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3 cups
chicken stock
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Salt
to taste
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1
small onion, diced
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1
garlic clove, diced
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2 tablespoons
extra virgin olive oil
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1/2 cup
dry wine (I used a rose)
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In the morning place the chicken thighs in a plastic bag or bowl with a generous amount of salt to brine in fridge all day or at least 1 hour. Mix ground spices together in bowl with pinch of salt.
Ask the hotline about this step!Cut sausage into discs and brown on each side in pan. You can leave them in links to brown as well, I prefer to cut them before cooking. Remove sausage onto paper towel lined plate and let cool. Leave fat in pan. Turn off heat if you need a few minutes to prepare next step.
Ask the hotline about this step!Remove chicken from refrigerator and pat dry. Use the sausage fat and add olive oil if you need more. Over medium-high heat brown chicken skin side down for 3-5 minutes or until rich brown, turn over and brown for 2 more minutes. Remove chicken to plate with sausage.
Ask the hotline about this step!Add olive oil as needed and onion to pan and cook about 3 minutes. Add dash of salt and a spoonful of the spice mixture. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add cauliflower and cook for 5 minutes. Add more of the spice mixture.
Ask the hotline about this step!Add wine and scrape bottom of pan for any bits. Cook for a couple of minutes. Add sausage and harissa and stir until harissa is well incorporated. Add tomato puree and cook for 5 minutes. Add more spice mixture.
Ask the hotline about this step!Add rice and distribute evenly across the pan. Add chicken. Add chicken stock. Add the rest of the spice mixture and season with salt. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook until rice is cooked through--I find this varies depending on the stove top--20-30 minutes. You can cover the pan if it is taking too long to cook. After it is done cooking let sit off the heat for 2-4 minutes. Serve.
Ask the hotline about this step!I made this last night, with a couple of subs - instead of harissa I had to make do with hot pepper flakes, red wine instead of white, and diluted tomato paste instead of sauce, and it was fabulous. Next time I'd increase the garlic manyfold, and reduce smoked paprika by a tiny bit, 25% or so. Really great, comforting meal, and excellent left overs the next day.
I cooked this this evening and it was delicious. I didn't have any caraway though so I used fennel seeds instead (also in the harissa which I made from the recipe on this website). I'd never brined anything before, so I just put the chicken in a bag with quite salty water, but I don't think it really made much of a difference except that it made the oil spit a lot more than usual.
A very satisfying meal on an autumn night, good work!
Really terrific! I found this by looking for a cauliflower recipe, but had a friend who can't have gluten, sugar, and a bunch of other stuff. Used a wet brine of sea salt, water, bay leaf, juniper berries, allspice and peppercorns. No wine (avoiding the sugar issue for my guest), but, extra broth and tomatoes.
By 'smoked paprika' do you mean agridulce? I used equal parts agridulce and dulce and it turned out great.
A real winner. Best paella I can recall making. Do my girls know their stuff, or, what?
I finally made this and put in some shrimp. They were great with the recipe! I used a paella pan for the first time and since we have an electric stove we put it on the gas grill outside. The smoky flavor the paella pick up was great. Fabulous recipe!
Congratulations!! I can't wait to try.
Just made this on Saturday night and it was a big hit! A great all-in-1 dish!
What a great dish. The flavors were indeed layered and complex. I had to use andouille as I could not get merguez (or chorizo for that matter). It suited the dish perfectly.
Thanks!
I'm planning to make this when my in-laws visit. Since I won't make it before then to try, I'm wondering if you think there's a type of seafood that would go well with the flavors or if it's best without.
Maybe shrimp? I haven't made it with seafood. Let me know how it turns out.
This looks absolutely delicious! I'm looking forward to making this one!
Mmm! I made this over the weekend and served it at a birthday gathering-- everyone loved it! Congrats on your win! :)
Thanks again everyone! I look forward to hearing how the paella turns out for you.
many congrats! :)
Well done!
Congratulations!
Excellent! I love this one.
http://www.blackboardeats.com has a deal for www.tienda.com paella kits (30% off)
I love www.blackboardeats.com. Such a great website! Thanks!
I get my authentic Spanish Paella ingredients at the best prices at http://www.rapososgourmet.com aka http://www.spainbestforless.com or check out their Amazon storefront with 99% rating!!!
NWB, Have you ever doubled this? If so, what kind of pan do you make it in? Looks wonderful.
To double the recipe I would use two pans because I don't have a big paella pan, but if you have a paella pan that serves 6-8 it would certainly work. Hope you enjoy it!
I love paella, and happen to have some harissa in my fridge, so will have to try this, although I will leave out the sausage and perhaps a little bit more smoked paprika.
This looks like a wonderful fall dinner, and I'll try it this week. I'm not a sausage person, but I have some pancetta that I'll substitute. Thank you!
Thanks again for the nice words!
This dish is great for a dinner party because you can have a glass of wine and spend time with your guests, instead of slaving away in the kitchen, while it cooks. It would be definitely be fun for a holiday, especially because it looks so nice on the table!
You should be able to find harissa at any upscale market--the Whole Foods in my neighborhood has it.
I like KKW's idea to serve this for Christmas Eve. Deep, rustic, flavors, a little heat, lots of family and friends - this would be perfect. Congratulations on being a finalist. Your recipe sounds great!
I'm going to try and find some harissa tomorrow. This dish sounds delicious!
I meant congratulations. Sounds like this would be a great Christmas Eve dinner to enjoy with your closest friends.
Congratulations on being a finalist!! Good luck!
Congrats on being a finalist. I love the blend of flavors you have here.
I look forward to trying this recipe. It sounds like a wonderful combination of flavors. Totally different than mine. I'm curious to see which one people favor. You probably do too! :)
Looks yum! Congrats!
Beautiful photography work! If the photographer reads this could you please tell what kind of lens is best suited for food photography? Maybe some tips too? Thanks.
Oh and congrats NWB!!! I never thought of a paella as a middle eastern type dish but this sounds amazing!
Congratulations -- I love the sound so this paella. You had me at the merguez and the harissa.
Thank you! I just saw your recipe for harissa--can't wait to make it, it looks wonderful!
I'm excited to be able to share this recipe and talk about food with so many great cooks!
Delicious Paella! Congrats! :)
I love this paella, the merguez, harissa, and spices are right up my alley. Very beautiful dish and the color is so rich! Congrats!
Mmm- I am excited to try this! Love the use of harissa- so interesting!
I love merguez, and plan to make this real soon. I'm going to add some preserved lemon I think. Congrats!
Congrats on the Editor's Pick and being a finalist! Love these flavors!
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Chicken and merguez (strategically tucked away in parchment, because no one needs to look at raw chicken), cauliflower, red wine (any wine will do), harissa, cumin, caraway seeds, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, tomato puree, onion, garlic, and arborio rice.
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The merguez, at the start of its toasting.
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After browning the merguez, we cut it into smaller pieces so we could better brown the sausage.
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Merguez out. Chicken in. (The chicken cooks in the merguez fat.)
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Prep time!
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The spice mixture: smoked paprika, sweet paprika, cumin, and caraway.
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Merrill removed the chicken to a plate.
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And did so enthusiastically!
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Then we cooked the onions in the chicken and merguez fat.
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Next up: the cauliflower.
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After a few minutes of softening, we added the red wine.
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The cauliflower, nicely glazed with wine and meat juices.
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The paella cooks. We chat.
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Amanda added the harissa.
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Then the tomato puree.
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The rice.
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After mixing in the rice, the dish completely transformed.
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We added the broth and nestled the chicken on top.
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We then added one last spoonful of the spice mixture, this time on top of the pieces of chicken.
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Have made this 5 times since trying it as our first paella in November. After first time, poured off the fat after the sausages cooked, and more recently swapped out the sausage for turkey sausage, but otherwise, perfect in every way. Texture, flavor, portion, ease of cooking- an A+! Thank you!