Paella with chicken and shrimp: a thin layer of rice, socarrat on the base
Paella is not risotto and follows the opposite rule: once the stock goes in, the rice is never stirred. That is how the socarrat forms on the base — a thin, toasted layer that in Valencia is scraped up with a spoon and is considered the best mouthful. The rice must lie thin, no more than two centimetres deep, which makes the width of the pan matter and its depth irrelevant.
Your own work in that: 48 min.
- Saffron and prep 15 min
- Chicken and sofrito 15 min
- Rice, unstirred 18 min
- Resting under a cloth 5 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneInfuse the saffron in the stock
Crumble the saffron threads between your fingers into the hot stock. Leave 15 minutes (brown the chicken meanwhile): the stock turns gold. Keep it warm until the end of cooking.
Ingredients: 300 g paella or arborio rice · 900 ml chicken stock · 1 pinch saffron · 100 g green peas
TipSaffron's colour and aroma dissolve readily in hot liquid and poorly in fat. Threads dropped straight into the pan give far less colour and flavour.
Crumbled threads into hot stockBrown the chicken
Pat the thigh pieces dry, salt and pepper them. Heat the oil in a wide pan and fry the chicken over high heat 6–8 minutes, turning once, until deeply browned all over. Set aside on a plate; it does not need to be cooked through yet.
Ingredients: 400 g boneless chicken thighs · 200 g raw shrimp · 4 tbsp olive oil · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Deeply browned, then onto a plateMake the sofrito
Lower to medium heat. In the same fat fry the finely chopped onion and pepper 8 minutes, add the garlic for a minute, then the grated tomatoes and the paprika. Fry another 5 minutes, until the mixture thickens, darkens and starts to come away from the base.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 4 cloves garlic · 1 pcs red pepper · 2 pcs tomatoes · 2 tsp sweet paprika
TipThe sofrito is the foundation of the whole dish. It is ready when a spoon drawn through it leaves a trail that doesn't fill with water: the sign the tomatoes have given up their moisture.
Thick, dark, holds a spoon trailCoat the rice
Add the rice and stir 2 minutes, until every grain is coated in fat and sofrito. Don't rinse the rice: the surface starch is wanted here.
Two minutes, grains coated in sofritoAdd the stock, level it — and stop stirring
Pour in all the hot saffron stock, return the chicken and bring to the boil. Spread the rice into an even layer with the back of a spoon, no more than 2 cm deep. From this moment you do not stir; at most you turn the pan. Cook 10 minutes over high heat, uncovered.
TipStirring releases starch and makes risotto. In paella the grains must stay separate and a crust must form on the base; every touch of the spoon destroys both.
An even layer, two centimetres, no more stirringAdd the shrimp and peas
Lower the heat. Press the shrimp into the surface and scatter the peas over the rice. Cook another 8 minutes, until the liquid disappears from the surface and the rice is tender with a slight bite. The shrimp go in at the end because they need only 3–4 minutes; added earlier they turn rubbery.
Shrimp and peas on top, eight minutesMake the socarrat
When no liquid is visible, raise the heat for 60–90 seconds and listen: the rice starts to crackle quietly and smells of toasted nuts. That is the base catching. The moment you smell burning, take it off the heat — the margin is thin.
TipYou judge socarrat by ear and nose, not by eye: lifting the rice with a spatula now breaks the layer. It gets scraped up only when you serve.
It crackles and smells of nutsRest under a cloth
Take off the heat, cover the pan with a clean tea towel (not a lid — steam would condense onto the rice) and leave 5 minutes. The moisture evens out. Serve straight from the pan with lemon wedges and parsley, scraping the socarrat off the base.
Ingredients: 1 pcs lemon · ½ bunch flat-leaf parsley
A cloth instead of a lid, five minutes
Before you start
Real Valencian paella
Traditional Valencian paella has neither shrimp nor chorizo: it contains chicken, rabbit, two kinds of bean and sometimes rosemary or snails. A version combining meat and seafood, like this one, is paella mixta — many Valencians see it as a departure from tradition, but it is popular all over Spain.
Which rice
Bomba or calasparra are best: they absorb up to three times their volume in liquid and don't collapse. Arborio is a good substitute but carries more starch, so be strict about not stirring. Never use long-grain rice.
Pan too small
If the rice lies deeper than 2 cm, the top will be raw when the bottom burns. Split it between two pans, or cut back to 200 g rice and 600 ml stock.
