Paella
Paella is a Spanish rice dish cooked in a wide, shallow pan with saffron, stock and meat or seafood. See how to get the crisp bottom called socarrat.
Also called Paella valenciana, Seafood paella.
Paella is a rice dish from Valencia, Spain. Short-grain rice is cooked in a wide, shallow pan with stock, saffron and other ingredients, such as chicken, rabbit, beans or seafood. Unlike risotto, you do not stir it, so the rice stays in separate grains and forms a crisp, toasted layer on the bottom called socarrat.
How to do it
- Heat olive oil in a paella pan or wide skillet about 35 to 40 cm (14 to 16 inches) across for 4 people.
- Brown the meat well on all sides. Push it to the edge.
- Cook a sofrito of grated tomato, garlic and smoked paprika in the middle until thick and dark.
- Add hot stock and saffron. Taste: it should be a little too salty, because the rice absorbs it.
- Scatter in short-grain rice, such as bomba, in an even layer. A thin layer, about 1 to 2 cm (½ inch), is right. Use roughly 3 parts stock to 1 part rice by volume.
- Do not stir from now on. Cook over high heat for 10 minutes, then lower the heat for 8 to 10 minutes more. Add seafood in the last minutes.
- Turn the heat up for the last 1 to 2 minutes to form the socarrat.
- Take it off the heat, cover with a cloth, and rest for 5 minutes.
How to tell it is done
The liquid is gone and the rice is tender with a slight bite. You hear a gentle crackle and smell toasting rice, not burning. A spoon scraped at the bottom finds a crisp, golden crust.
Common mistakes
- Stirring. It releases starch and the paella turns creamy.
- A deep pan. The rice cooks unevenly and no crust forms.
- Long-grain rice. It does not absorb enough flavor.
- Burning the bottom. Stop as soon as it smells toasty.
In recipes
Paella valenciana is the traditional version with chicken, rabbit and green beans. Seafood paella (paella de marisco) and mixed paella are common elsewhere. Arroz negro is colored with squid ink. Recipes that say "paella rice" mean a short, round grain that absorbs a lot of liquid.
Paella recipes
2 recipes from the sites we collect.
Related terms
- SaffronSaffron is the dried stigma of a crocus flower and the world's priciest spice. How to bloom it for paella, risotto and Swedish saffron buns.
- SofritoSofrito is a cooked base of onion, garlic, peppers and often tomato used across Spanish, Latin American and Caribbean cooking for rice, beans and stews.
- RisottoRisotto is Italian rice cooked by adding hot stock a little at a time while stirring, until creamy but with a bite. See the ratio and the finishing step.
- PilafPilaf is rice toasted in fat, then cooked in seasoned stock so every grain stays separate and fluffy. See the ratio, the timing and why you should rest it.
- Smoked paprikaSmoked paprika is ground red pepper dried over oak fires, like Spanish pimentón de la Vera. It gives a smoky flavor to chorizo, paella and stews.
- StockStock is an unsalted liquid made by simmering bones, vegetables and aromatics in water for hours. It is the base of soups, sauces, gravy and risotto.