For the holidays, all I want is to create a festive yet easy meal to share with my loved ones. I made this simple and impressive dish is inspired by the famous paella using Spanish baby chicken. It is the perfect premium ingredient to use for any of your holiday cooking. Spanish chicken is succulent, tender and delicious and that is not surprising as it is bred with a 100% vegetarian feeding diet, it respects the EU standards of regulations quality, traceability and animal welfare. The meat is boneless, all-white and tender so it absorbed all the delicious herbs and spices, perfect to prep ahead of time and enjoy the festivities with your loved ones.
Spanish Chicken
Prep time:
Cook time:
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- Description
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- Ingredients
- Method
- Notes
- Nutrition
BY YASMINE IDRISS
For the holidays, all I want is to create a festive yet easy meal to share with my loved ones. I made this simple and impressive dish is inspired by the famous paella using Spanish baby chicken. It is the perfect premium ingredient to use for any of your holiday cooking. Spanish chicken is succulent, tender and delicious and that is not surprising as it is bred with a 100% vegetarian feeding diet, it respects the EU standards of regulations quality, traceability and animal welfare. The meat is boneless, all-white and tender so it absorbed all the delicious herbs and spices, perfect to prep ahead of time and enjoy the festivities with your loved ones.
Spanish chicken con paella
For 6 people
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 4 baby chicken
- 4- 5 large garlic cloves, sliced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp piment d’espelette
- Generous pinch of saffron (or 1/2 tsp turmeric powder)
- 1/2 tsp dried Zaatar leaves (or oregano)
- 1 green bell peppers, thinly sliced
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
For the Paella
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 4- 5 large garlic cloves, sliced
- 1/2 tsp dried Zaatar leaves (or oregano)
- 2 tbsp sun dried tomato paste
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp piment d’espelette
- 1 cup frozen fine green peas, thawed
- 1 green bell peppers, grated
- 1 can of black eyed peas, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup bomba rice
- 3 cups of stock (vegetable or chicken), with a generous pinch of saffron (or 1/2 tsp turmeric powder), heated up to simmering point
Method
- 1)
In the same pan and with all the lovely aromatics, add the green peas, the grated bell peppers, and the black eyed peas
- 2)
Mix well so all the veggies are coated in the sauces and spices and herbs.
- 3)
Next fill the pan with the hot stock, measuring how much you add as each 1 cup of bomba rice requires 3 cups of water (so 3 times its volume).
- 4)
When the stock begins simmering, add the rice on top and mix lightly.
- 5)
We don’t want to over mix the rice so it stays nice and fluffy (not a risotto!).
For the Chicken
- 1)
In a pestle and mortar, pound the herbs and spices together with the garlic cloves until turned into a paste.
- 2)
Add the olive oil and whisk to combine.
- 3)
Transfer the 4 baby chicken along with the marinade into a ziplock bag.
- 4)
Massage the marinade into the chicken and let it rest in the fridge for at least an hour.
- 5)
When ready to cook, remove from the fridge and pound the chicken as flat as possible using the pestle or a heavy kitchen tool such as a rolling pin.
- 6)
Divide the chicken into 16 small strips, roll each strip around 1 slice of green pepper and tie with a string.
- 7)
Keep aside while we proceed with the rice.
For the Paella
- 1)
Lemon wedges and chopped parsley, to garnish and serve.
- 2)
In a large frying pan, flat cast iron or a paella pan, heat the olive oil then add the onions, the garlic cloves, the zaatar leaves, all the tomato paste, paprika, piment d’espelette and season with salt.
- 3)
Cook until the onions are tender but not burnt.
- 4)
Place the chicken on top, and allow it to sear, add a bit of stock if needed.
- 5)
When all the sides are seared and almost golden, transfer them to an oven proof dish, cover with foil and cook at 180C for 20min.
Notes
Spanish chicken is available in Dubai @casinettofood @waitroseuae @carrefouruae @spinneysuae