Your family won’t believe you prepared and served this all in the same pot. There are honestly no rules with paellas and you could easily sub in so many different vegetables or protein choices. Serve alongside a green tossed salad for a nourishing weeknight dinner.
Weeknight Skillet Paella
Ingredients
- 3 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2 in (1.25 cm) pieces
- 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt
- 1/4 tsp (1 mL) ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp (2 mL) smoked paprika
- 1 Tbsp (15 mL) grapeseed oil
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 cups (350 mL) arborio rice
- 3 cups (750 mL) unsalted chicken broth
- 28 oz (798 mL) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes
- 1 cup (250 mL) frozen peas
- 12 oz (340 g) large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 lemon
- 1 Tbsp (15 mL) chopped flat leaf parsley leaves (optional)
Nutrition
Per serving:
- calories426
- protein39g
- fat10g
- saturated fat2g
- trans fat0g
- carbohydrates42g
- sugars8g
- fibre4g
- sodium829mg
Directions
01
In small bowl, stir together chicken, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika until chicken is well coated in seasoning.
02
In large 9 or 10 in (23 or 25 cm) skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add seasoned chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
03
Add onion to skillet and cook, stirring often, until translucent, about 4 minutes. Stir in garlic and let cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in rice and, stirring occasionally, cook until lightly toasted, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir broth and diced tomatoes, along with their juices, into rice mixture.
04
Cover and cook without stirring for 12 minutes. Stir in chicken, cover, and continue to cook without stirring until most of the liquid has absorbed into rice, about another 5 to 8 minutes.
05
Scatter peas and shrimp over rice; cover again, and cook until shrimp is pink and opaque, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and squeeze juice from half a lemon over skillet paella before sprinkling with chopped parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.
Karlene Karst, RD
Karlene Karst, RD, is a registered dietician and author of The Metabolic Syndrome Program (Wiley, 2006) and co-author of Healthy Fats for Life (Wiley, 2004).
