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How to make Spanish Paella on the Grill

Paella is a rice dish from with roots from Valencia, Spain. There are so many variations of Paella. The saffron rice, infused with smoky Spanish Paprika is the base of this dish. This recipe includes chicken, shrimp, chorizo and fresh clams. Cooking this dish on our Weber grill was fun to make, and not complicated. Our guests loved the smoky flavors of this Mediterranean dish.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Spanish
Keyword Paella, Paella on the Grill
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 45 minutes
Resting time 15 minutes
Total Time 2 hours
Servings 8
Author Debby - www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Equipment

  • 1 Paella pan or light-colored 16 by 13.5-inch tri-ply roasting pan

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs trimmed and halved crosswise
  • Salt and pepper
  • 12 ounces jumbo shrimp 16 to 20 per pound, peeled and deveined
  • 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided; (4 Tbsp and 2 Tbsp)
  • 6 garlic cloves minced; divided (5½ and ½)
  • 1 ¾ teaspoons hot smoked paprika divided (1½ and ¼)
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 8-ounce bottle clam juice
  • cup dry sherry
  • Pinch saffron threads optional
  • 1 onion chopped fine
  • ½ cup jarred roasted red peppers chopped fine
  • 3 cups Arborio rice or traditional Bomba Rice
  • 1 pound littleneck clams scrubbed
  • 1 pound Spanish-style chorizo sausage cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 cup frozen peas thawed
  • Lemon wedges

Instructions

  • Place chicken on large plate and sprinkle both sides with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
    Toss shrimp with 1 tablespoon oil, ½ teaspoon garlic, ¼ teaspoon paprika, and ¼ teaspoon salt in bowl until evenly coated. Set aside.

For the "broth"

  • Heat 1 tablespoon oil in medium saucepan over medium heat until shimmering.
    Add remaining garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic sticks to bottom of saucepan and begins to brown, about 1 minute.
    Add tomato paste and remaining 1½ teaspoons paprika and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until dark brown bits form on bottom of saucepan, about 1 minute.
    Add broth, clam juice, sherry, and saffron, if using. Increase heat to high and bring to boil. Remove saucepan from heat and set aside.
  • For a Charcoal Grill: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter mounded with charcoal briquettes (7 quarts).
    When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Using tongs, arrange 20 unlit briquettes evenly over coals.
    Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
  • For a Gas Grill: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Leave all burners on high.
  • Clean and oil cooking grate. Place chicken on grill and cook until both sides are lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes total. Return chicken to plate. Clean cooking grate.

Grilling instructions:

  • Place roasting pan on grill (turning burners to medium-high if using gas) and add remaining ¼ cup oil.
    When oil begins to shimmer, add onion, red peppers, and ½ teaspoon salt.
    Cook, stirring frequently, until onion begins to brown, 4 to 7 minutes.
    Add rice (turning burners to medium if using gas) and stir until grains are well coated with oil.
  • Arrange chicken around perimeter of pan.
    Pour broth mixture and any accumulated juices from chicken over rice.
    Smooth rice into even layer, making sure nothing sticks to sides of pan and no rice rests atop chicken.
    When liquid reaches gentle simmer, place shrimp in center of pan in single layer. NOTE: Since shrimp cooks quickly and overcooked shrimp turns tough, I waited to add the shrimp until the last 5 minutes of cooking the paella.)
    Arrange clams in center of pan, evenly distributing with shrimp (see note) and pushing hinge sides of clams into rice slightly so they stand up.
    Distribute chorizo evenly over surface of rice.
    Cook (covered if using gas), moving and rotating pan to maintain gentle simmer across entire surface of pan, until rice is almost cooked through, 12 to 18 minutes. (If using gas, heat can also be adjusted to maintain simmer.)
  • Sprinkle peas evenly over paella, cover grill, and cook until liquid is fully absorbed and rice on bottom of pan sizzles, 5 to 8 minutes.
    Continue to cook, uncovered, checking bottom of pan frequently with metal spoon, until uniform golden-brown crust forms, 8 to 15 minutes longer. (Rotate and slide pan around grill as necessary to ensure even crust formation.)
    Remove pan from grill, cover with aluminum foil, and let stand for 10 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

Notes

This recipe was developed using a light-colored 16 by 13.5-inch tri-ply roasting pan; however, it can be made in any heavy roasting pan that measures at least 14 by 11 inches. If your roasting pan is dark in color, the cooking times will be on the lower end of the ranges given. The recipe can also be made in a 15- to 17-inch paella pan. If littlenecks are unavailable, use 1½ pounds shrimp in step 1 and season them with ½ teaspoon salt.
Recipe source: Cook's Illustrated July/August 2016