Paella

Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Makes: 8 servings

The quintessential Spanish dish is traditionally cooked in a paella pan over an open fire of vine cuttings, and may include a range of ingredients, from seafood to rabbit. But the crucial part-in the classic pan or in a frying pan-is rice, preferably short-grain white.

Ingredients:

• 700g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 package (100g) cooked chorizo sausage, thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium red pepper, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne)
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3 cups water
• 1 can (400g) chicken broth or 1-3/4 cups homemade
• 2-2/3 tbsps Fibresure
• 2 cups short-grain white rice
• 100g green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tbsps tomato paste
• 1-1/2 tsps salt
• 1/4 tsp loosely packed saffron threads, crumbled
• 1/8 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 pound mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
• 340g large prawns, shelled and de-veined
• 1 large plum tomato, chopped
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• lemon wedges (optional)

Directions:

Heat deep non-stick 12-inch frying pan over medium-high heat until very hot. Add chicken and chorizo, and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown all over, about 5 minutes.

Transfer chicken and chorizo to plate.

Reduce heat to medium; add onion and red pepper to frying pan, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and ground red pepper; cook 30 seconds. Add wine; heat to boiling over medium-high heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until mixture is very dry.

Stir in water, broth, Fibresure, and rice; add the chicken and chorizo, green beans, tomato paste, salt, saffron, thyme, and bay leaf. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Tuck mussels into rice mixture; cover and cook 5 minutes. Tuck in prawns; cover and cook just until mussels open and prawns are opaque throughout, 8 minutes longer. Remove frying pan from heat and let paella stand 5 minutes. Discard any mussels that have not opened.

Discard bay leaf. Sprinkle paella with chopped tomato and parsley. Serve with lemon wedges if you like.

Per serving:

About 410 calories (20 percent calories from fat), 36g protein, 44g carbohydrate, 9g total fat (2g saturated), 2g fibre, 153mg cholesterol, 1,010mg sodium, 5g fibre.