Rita Reviews

living my best possible southern life

Seafood Paella

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I love Paella! It is one of those dishes that will feed a crowd without a big budget. Seafood Paella is a treat and one that I shared with y’all back in 2017. This is still one of my favorite recipes but I thought I would share it again and allow those who didn’t see it the first time find it again. I hope that you love it as much as I do.

Original 2017 Post:

I don’t know about all of you but I love food and everything to do with food including all the gadgets in the kitchen. Welcome to another week of Tasty Tuesday where you will find anything from a recipe to tips on washing dishes! Just kidding cause, I hate to wash dishes and will get out of it if I possibly can and do most nights!

I changed things up again on y’all. Yesterday I said I was going to share chowder with you but I really wanted some paella so I thought I would do that instead. If you have never had paella then this is a great recipe to start with. Paella combines Roman and Arabic cultures and is very flavorful. That is most likely because it has Spanish saffron in it. This is a super expensive spice that we only need a little of. One of the great things about paella is that there are many different versions depending on where you live and the ingredients available to you. Also the seafood I use in this paella can be changed based on your tastes and what is available.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 cups instant brown rice
  • 1⅓ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
    1 large pinch saffron
  • 1 pound peeled and deveined raw shrimp (21-25 per pound)
  • 1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
  • 1 pound mussels, scrubbed well
  • 4 lemon wedges (optional)

Directions:

  •  Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
  • Add onion, bell pepper and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 3 minutes.
  • Add rice, broth, thyme, salt, pepper and saffron and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
  • Stir in shrimp and peas. Place mussels on top of the rice in an even layer. Cover and continue cooking until the mussels have opened and the rice is tender, about 5 minutes more.
  • Remove from the heat and let rest, covered, until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired. 

Notes:

  • The shrimp takes me FOREVER to peel and de-vein. I’m not how long it will take you all or if you buy it already that way.
  • To scrub the mussels just hold them under running water and use a stiff brush to remove any barnacles. Pull off any black fibrous “beards.”
  • Be sure to discard any mussels with broken shells or whose shell remains open after you tap it.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. That looks delicious! We buy jumbo shrimp from the coast at the meat market but we clean them together so it doesn’t take too long. I am going to try this recipe!

  2. I don’t eat sea food, but my husband loves it. I’m always trying to figure out new ways to cook shromp besides in butter with lemon and pepper. I’ll have to give this a shot and see if he likes it.

  3. I’ve always thought of paella as being time consuming and complicated, and requiring a special pan. But assuming I started with peeled and deveined shrimp, your recipe certainly looks doable–and delicious. Thanks for sharing.

  6. I’ve never made a seafood paella, it sounds so complicated. But this is easy and looks soo good. I want to make it!

  7. I haven’t had paella ever. It does look easy to make. I doubt my kids would try it especially if they knew mussels were in it. But I bet my husband and I would like it.

  10. Just found your blog! Love your tasty tuesday series! This paella looks easy and delicious and we are on a paella kick right now!

  12. I love seafood. This looks amazing. Hope you had a restful & joyful Independence Day. 🙂