Seafood Paella

Hola! This traditional seafood paella is a perfect weekend dish when entertaining friends or wanting to impress guests at a dinner party. It has a bad rep for being difficult, however it is actually quicker and demands less attention than a risotto. Serve with a crisp dry white wine and garnish with fresh parsley and zesty lemon. Deliciosa! For a vegan version - simply swap the seafood for your choice of cooked vegetables. Our pick is cauliflower, green beans and peas.

Ingredients

• 500g bag steamed mussels, half of the mussels removed from the shells

• 2 squid tubes, thinly sliced

• 8-10 whole raw prawns

• 1 large capsicum, cut into thin strips

• 1 brown onion, finely diced

• 2 large tomatoes, diced

• 2 cups arborio rice

• 1 cup dry white wine

• 3 cups vegetable or seafood stock

• 1 good pinch of saffron threads

• 3 teaspoons smoked paprika, or to taste

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• salt and pepper

• olive oil

• lemon wedges, to serve

• chopped parsley, to garnish

Method

1. Fry the onion and capsicum in a good splash of olive oil in a paella pan (or any large, shallow pan or wok) until they begin to soften.

2. Add the tomatoes, paprika, sugar and saffron threads and cook until the mixture becomes thick and jammy. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add the rice and stir until all grains are coated.

4. Add the white wine.

5. When the mixture is bubbling, add the hot stock. Bring to the boil and stir well to ensure rice is evenly distributed across the bottom of the pan

6. Simmer, without stirring, for 18-20 minutes on a low heat.

7. Add the squid to the top of the mixture, and press into the rice. Cover and let cook for 5-10 minutes until squid begins to cook through (turns white).

8. Place the prawns on top. When the bottom begins to turn pink, flip them over.

9. Add the mussels (both with and without the shells) to the top of the mixture along with some lemon wedges.

10. If rice begins to make a crackling sound, you may need to add some more stock (only a small amount) to ensure the rice doesn't stick and burn.

11. Cover and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the prawns are cooked through.

12. Sprinkle generously with parsley and serve with additional lemon wedges.