What Is Paella?
An aromatic and filling staple from Valencia, Spain, this party-friendly rice dish is a great alternative to pasta, risotto, and casseroles when feeding a large group. It's easy and presents a complete meal packed with flavor.
paella was cooked outside over an open flame in wide, shallow, concave pans called paellera and featured a bevy of ingredients that most people probably wouldn't recognize as paella today. It was common to find rabbit, snails, and beans, cooked along with the short-grain rice grown in the area. It's hard to believe, but it's true. These days, it's more common to find mussels, shrimp, chicken, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and Spanish chorizo (a smoked pork sausage redolent with the flavor and aroma of garlic and paprika). The defining characteristic, however, is saffron, picked by hand from the flowers of a plant in the iris family, which gives the rice its well known yellow hue. (Photo courtesy of Stock.XCHNG/ArminH)
Photo courtesy of Stock.XCHNG/kasseckert)
So the next time there's a large social gathering headed your way, whether it's a birthday party, potluck, or just a Sunday dinner with friends, and lasagna just seems a little tired, try this easy alternative. It's sure to surprise and delight even the most discriminating palates.