Arroz con Pollo (Spanish Chicken and Rice)

Chicken thighs and saffron rice with peppers, peas and paprika, cooked in one pan.

TIME BREAKDOWN
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 55 min
Total: 1 hour 10 minutes
Vegetarian
❌
Nuts
❌
Serves
4 people
Difficulty
Easy

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 8 bone-in chicken thighs, about 1.2kg
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 ripe tomato, grated, skin discarded
  • 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
  • A good pinch of saffron strands, about 0.3g
  • 300g paella (bomba) rice
  • 750ml hot chicken stock (2 stock cubes)
  • 100g frozen peas
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges
  • Salt and black pepper to taste

Method

  1. Soak the saffron in 3 tbsp of the hot stock. Season the chicken and heat the oil in a large, lidded casserole over a medium-high heat. Brown the chicken for 6 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate.

  2. Pour off all but 2 tbsp of the fat. Cook the onion and pepper for 6 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato and paprika and cook for 4 minutes.

  3. Stir in the rice for 1 minute, then add the hot stock and saffron liquid and season. Return the chicken to the pot and bring to the boil.

  4. Cover and cook over a low heat for 25 minutes until the rice is tender and the stock has been absorbed. Scatter over the peas for the last 5 minutes.

  5. Leave to rest, covered, for 5 minutes. Scatter over the parsley and serve with the lemon wedges.