No Saffron-No Really Good Paella

terman05 - October 7, 2007 12:15:54 PM PST

Really good Paella is not done without saffron. Goya azafran(saffron) is not expensive, and it is just as good as Ms. Stewart\'s expensive spices. Try it. You\'ll love it, for the taste and beautiful color of really great Paella.

38 of 49 found this review helpful.

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With a little twist

Jun - October 7, 2007 12:10:53 PM PST

Being Japanese, I always have rice made and leftovers in the fridge. I used curry powder in addition to the spices listed and used pork and pineapple in it also. By using cold rice, the cooking time was shorter and the rice came out nice and fluffy and absorbed all the flavors.

I will definitely make this again!!

24 of 32 found this review helpful.

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complete meal

biba k - October 7, 2007 12:38:09 PM PST

i recommend this recipe to be complete meal as it contains all the food groups which are essential for the body .species added to it makes it more delicious .this is a westernisd version of indian pulao.

18 of 20 found this review helpful.

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What about ths cholesterol????

batmanbob - October 7, 2007 12:22:12 PM PST

Why do none of the recipes here give a cholestrol count? As a heart attack survivor I am more interested in the cholestrol count than than calories.

36 of 58 found this review helpful.

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Shellfish Allergies

the Wicked Witch - October 7, 2007 12:25:01 PM PST

Having more than one family member (including myself) who is allergic to shellfish, I found that blending several different types of sausage (chicken, italian and turkey) makes for a most pleasant meal. I\'ve also tried it with cut up chicken breast instead of the sausage and with a mixture of brown and white rice. Overall not bad.

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Paella is the name of the pan

mlaguado - January 5, 2008 04:03:05 AM PST

Paella is the name of the pan where rice is cooked in may ways in Valencia region of Spain. The recipe calls for logn-grain rice, but this is wrong, real paella has to be made with short grain rice that absorves all flavors better, and the shrimp should be cooked with all skin and head, much tastier!!!

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sounds good but it isn

chateautryon - March 10, 2008 03:08:14 PM PST

This is a great dish but call it something else. I have tried using tumeric as a substitute for saffron, but it adds a different flavor. If you don\'t have saffron then better to go without.

keep the amount of tomato to a minimum-- grate (yes, with the cheese grater) half a large tomato into the pan and make a sofrito with a bit of onion and olive oil. Or just squirt a bit a tomato paste in from a tube.

Why not find some Goya chorizos and fry them up with a bit of real chicken (chopped into bits but not deboned or skinned)?

Since you\'re in the supermarket anyway buy some clam juice or fish broth, add it too. Get some roasted pimentos in the Italian section. In the frozen section, seafood medley. Now you\'ve got a fighting chance with the ingredients.

I agree with a previous writer: short grain rice works much better. Risotto or sushi rice does nicely if you can\'t get short grain.

Order of assembly: fry the meat and chicken first, remove, then the onion and tomato, and add water, bring to boil, add the peas, the shrimp, seafood, previously fried meats, rice and walk away. Add the pimento at the end as a decorative garnish, in slices.

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Healthy doesn

Da Jiggsta - October 7, 2007 12:06:48 PM PST

This is a perfect recipe to "add on" to. Since most of the "flavor" is provided from the meats (shrimp, chicken

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Need a little more specificity

garyb11111 - October 7, 2007 12:49:58 PM PST

Is the can of tomatoes drained first?--the amount of liquid 1.5 cups of rice can absorb is limited, and the recipe already calls for 2 cans of broth. But thanks for alternatives to saffron, including to the person who suggested curry powder, which I use often, too.

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Might be a nice rice dish but this is NOT paella

laura_trevino - May 1, 2008 11:29:50 AM PST

This recipe is embarassingly bad.

Canned chicken stock will not work straight from the can. You need a stock that has plenty of gelatin. Try simmering it with some cheap chicken parts with bones, like necks or wings, first. That should give it more body.

You need to create a sofrito first. That is your flavor base for most Spanish cooking. Cook onions slowly in olive oil until they caramelize. This takes a little while worth it. Add a little tomato if you like.

Saffron is used for flavor in a paella not color so tumeric is not an acceptable substitute.

Also paella requires short grain rice. You won\'t get the right texture with long grain. And the rice needs to be absorbent. A good paella is in the stock and your rice needs to suck all of that up.

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Paella Valenciana

VICTOR B - February 21, 2009 12:06:23 AM PST

I think you missing some of the recipe like green beans, artichoke, cayenne, red pepper roasted, spanish chorizo, saffron, smoke sweet paprika, and snail. If you add this ingredients, your paella is more flavor and interesting.

1 of 1 found this review helpful.

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Have you eat real paella in Spain Martha ?

Annie - July 31, 2008 12:00:30 PM PST

If it doesn\'t have Saffron is doesn\'t have neither the right color or the right taste. I recommend to go to a Spanish website and get the real deal. This is just rice with stuff.

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This is not paella

rhaazz - July 10, 2008 12:07:07 PM PST

The key to a good paella is the soccarat -- the dense, chewy, almost-but-not-quite-burned crust. Otheriwse you just end up with rice soup. Gack. This recipe might or might not produce the crust -- but it\'s disturbing that Ms. Stewart doesn\'t even mention the concept.

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Not a Paella ...

gabriella s - July 10, 2008 10:15:03 AM PST

I made this dish yesterday , i am a good cook and i have been in Spain several times , but this paella is the worst i have ever eaten , too simplified , it should be called "Rice with ... " but not Paella .

1 of 1 found this review helpful.

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Single man, so give him a break ok!

Uncle Wurm - June 16, 2008 11:36:24 AM PST

Am I supposed to cook the rice first before i add it to the pan (step 2)?
It doesnt say ..............!
Thanks

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Easy PaeLLa!

anonymous!! - December 31, 2007 03:38:24 PM PST

This easy-peasy-lemon-sqeezy dish was served to my family on Dec.30! Everyone thought it was a delicous meal! It was so easy to make and quick too!!

____
anonymous!!

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Yummy, but takes a LONG time

Amy - November 5, 2007 10:15:44 AM PST

I followed this recipe exactly and it was delicious! I used chicken apple sausage, which I eat regularly. The only problem I had was the time it took for the broth to simmer and absorb--almost an hour and a half!! And the dish was a bit "wet". Next time I\'ll probably only use 1 can of chicken broth instead of 2. I thought about using saffron to make it more authentically Spanish, but the cost of real saffron is a bit much. The turmeric worked fine, though. I\'ll definitely make this again. It was a big hit in my house.

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Another Martha Stewart Mess

tesseract69 - June 13, 2008 05:18:57 PM PST

Keep this woman out of the kitchen!

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artha need to try PAELLA

truchotrucha - May 1, 2008 12:00:07 PM PST

Martha has no idea of what paella is. Give whatever name you want to your easy rice casserole Martha, but please do more study about what PAELLA really is.

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This is paella?

Monica S - May 5, 2008 03:22:23 PM PST

What a way to destroy Spain\'s marvelous dish! Not everything can be simplified in this life. This is pathetic! The main ingredients are missing. Also, the point of Paella is the mixture of meats, including pork and chicken. This is very limited.

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Tumeric? No Way

laureljhnsnesq - October 31, 2007 01:54:43 PM PST

I totally agree that tumeric is not authentic, and introduces a different flavor. Goya azafran is one option that is now readily available in most markets. If you do use saffron, you really only need a good pinch - not a whole 1/4 teaspoon.

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muy bueno

DooDoo - October 15, 2007 01:26:40 PM PST

very good, will try this ... low fat, useful carbs ... a little low on fiber but overall high marks. have some Spanish or Italian wine with it !

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Zafron and short

iperez1929 - September 24, 2009 12:56:36 PM PST

I would replace the long grain rice for a short to medium grain, either Valencia or California type. A short grain rice will absorbe better the flavors

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A little bland...

sunshine0163 - February 22, 2009 05:20:31 PM PST

I agree with previous reviews...the dish is a little bland. Tasted like it was lacking something, and after reading the reviews, sounds like it must be lacking saffron. I will make this dish again, but I plan on using saffron

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easy paella

matango81259 - February 22, 2009 01:19:39 PM PST

this plate look like rice

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No saffron?

mari - February 22, 2009 12:25:29 PM PST

I\\\'m sorry but no paella can be called or taste like a real paella without Saffron. It is a must , it would be like having a BLT without the bacon. The shrimp needs to be cooked with the shell or skin for more flavor . The original recipe like in all Spanish dishes uses short grain rice . Other than all I just mentioned it was fairly good in general.

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YUM!

Kristen - February 21, 2009 11:08:01 PM PST

If you are worried about colesterol you shouldn\\\'t even go near Paella anyway....this was DELISH! Saffron is not that expensive and it\\\'s a good investment to buy a tin of it especially if you make rice dishes alot.

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what paella???

questmom62 - February 21, 2009 06:41:47 PM PST

this recipe sucks!!!! go to spain and eat the real stuff then call it paella.

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Real Paella

Paul M - February 21, 2009 05:27:50 PM PST

I have been cooking Paella for 30 years and when I look at that recipe, it looks like something that comes from a can. Sorry Martha.
And yes real Paella has saffron in it. the recipe I see here is actually missing more then half the ingredients.
Try my recipe and you will go insane. but my recipe is secret . You would be at my place every day wanting more and more.
Paella Valencia is the real deal !!!

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cholesterol vs saturated fats

glo - February 21, 2009 08:23:31 AM PST

This sounds like a good recipe. I just wanted to tell BATMANBOB that dietary cholesterol does not cause cholesterol in your body, saturated fats do.

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