Easy Chicken and Chorizo Paella {just 35 Minutes!}
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This hearty chicken and chorizo paella will become your favourite comfort meal during the week. It swaps the seafood for flavourful chorizo and chicken and is ready in just 35 minutes.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Quick and Easy: This chicken paella recipe with chorizo is a one-pot meal that is fast enough to make on any busy weeknight.
- Flavourful: I use bold flavours in this chorizo paella dish like sofrito, saffron infused rice, and of course…the chorizo sausage!
- Customizable: You don’t have to stick with just chicken and chorizo! Make it how you like it! Add seafood, beef, or pork as the protein and add any veggies you like!
- Feed a Crowd: This is such an easy meal to make for a crowd. This chorizo paella recipe feeds 6, but you could easily double it to feed 12!
- Comfort Meal: Any rice dish that is hot, bubby, and full of flavour is perfect to curl up with on the sofa.
- Budget Friendly: Rice, chicken, chorizo…they are all ingredients that won’t break your budget.
Other easy Spanish recipes you might also love … Vegetarian paella, Spanish Tortilla with tomato frito and Spanish Chicken and Chorizo Tray Bake.
What is Paella?
Authentic paella from Spain contains ingredients such as saffron, shortgrain rice, rabbit, shellfish, and other local delicacies like snails. And while these are great, I decided to put my own spin on it and make a chicken paella recipe, then add a bold boost of flavour with chorizo.
This chicken chorizo paella has many of the same attributes as the original, however I feel the flavour combination is so much better, and the ingredients I use are cheaper! Such as when I use turmeric as a substitute for saffron.
Now I don’t want you to be spooked and think this recipe will taste like turmeric. We’re using such a small amount for the quantity of other ingredients we’re using. It’s just enough to add a nice colour to the rice, giving that stunning golden glow to this chicken and chorizo paella.
Traditional elements of a paella include:
- Sofrito base: onion, peppers, garlic.
- Short grain rice, cooked within the other ingredients of the paella.
- Minimum stirring! This is not a chicken and chorizo risotto, where we have to stir with every ladle of stock. We just leave it be and let the flavours do their thing (making it super low effort).
- Yellow, saffron infused rice.
- Smoked Paprika – a stand out flavour that I associate with any paella recipe.
Ingredients
The main ingredients that make this Chicken and Chorizo Paella recipe fantastic are the following:
Chicken thighs
I love the tenderness of chicken thighs and think they work best for any Spanish paella. Also thighs are generally cheaper than chicken breast and tastier.
Spanish chorizo
The smokiness of the cured Spanish chorizo sausage, infuses into the base of the paella which seasons the whole dish. I always find that the fat that renders from chorizo when frying on a low heat, is so so flavourful and I think that’s why this chicken and chorizo paella recipe is my favourite. I also like to choose a chorizo with a hint of spice, as this adds more depth of flavour. If you love chorizo, try my Spanish Chicken & Chorizo Stew!
Paella Rice
Paella rice is a short grain rice that is cultivated in Eastern Spain. It absorbs moisture really well and is integral to the paella coming together perfectly.
Spices
In this “not so authentic” paella recipe, I use turmeric and paprika to take the place of the expensive saffron. The turmeric has a yellow colour similar to saffron and also an earthy flavour. The paprika brings a bit of sweetness and smokiness that you would also find when using saffron.
See the recipe card for full information on all ingredients and quantities.
Variations/ Adaptations
If you like the traditional seafood paella, try adding prawns, clams, mussels, or your favourite fish instead of the chicken and chorizo.
A great substitute for chorizo is bacon, since it has a similar salty, smokey flavour to it.
No short-grain rice? That’s OK! You can make your paella with brown rice, with long-grain rice, with basmati rice, or any other rice you have on hand.
Make it vegan by removing all animal products and replacing it with a vegan friendly meat substitute like Quorn or with tofu.
How to make this chicken and chorizo paella
- Start this easy paella recipe by adding the diced onion and olive oil into a large/deep non-stick frying pan on a low/medium heat. Season with salt and sauté for around 3 minutes, until softened (Image 1).
- Then add the chopped chorizo into the pan and fry for a couple of minutes, adding the garlic in after the fat starts to render from the chorizo (Image 2).
3. Add the rice, paprika, turmeric, and another pinch of salt and pepper (Image 3).
4. Gently fry for a couple of minutes. This will toast the rice slightly and bloom the spices (Image 4).
5. Pour the chopped tomatoes and continue to fry (Image 5).
6. Next add the chicken thighs and stock into the pan. Stir to incorporate everything and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover with a lid for 20 minutes (Image 6).
7. After this time, stir the peppers and peas into the pan and pop the lid back on to cook for another 5 minutes (Image 7).
8. At this point, everything will be cooked! Finish by squeezing the juice of half a lemon (or a whole depending on preference) into the pan and seasoning with salt if necessary. Enjoy! (Image 8).
If you like the one-pot element to this recipe, you might also love my; Simple Prawn Thai Curry, Creamy Chicken and Bacon Pasta and Gnocchi Alla Sorrentina.
Tips and Tricks
Don’t stir your paella!
This chicken & chorizo paella is best if you don’t stir it after adding the stock. This increases the sticky bits of rice at the bottom of the pan called “socarrat”, which is a trademark part of making paella. You just want to make sure the socarrat doesn’t burn to the bottom of the pan by checking at the end of cooking when you add the peppers and peas.
Remove excess fat from chicken thighs
Due to the increased level of fat in chicken thighs, you usually get more visible fat attached to the meat. I like to trim this off as I don’t like the texture and it also reduces unnecessary fats, when the meat is already juicy and tender.
Ensure that the heat is well distributed on the bottom of the pan
As we aren’t moving the rice around a lot, we want to ensure that everything cooks evenly. You can do this by adjusting the placement of the burner every five minutes if you have a smaller hob.
If you have a really good heavy pan, the heat will transfer evenly anyway. This will make the best socarrat for your paella recipe.
Make Ahead Instructions
Paella is a great dish to make ahead of time. If you are having a large gathering and plan to use it within an hour or two, you can cover the dish with foil and place it in a warm oven. You can also refrigerate it and reheat it on the stove, in the oven, or in the microwave.
If you plan to use it in small portions, like for lunches throughout the week or month, I would divide the paella into individual freezer safe containers and then just remove and reheat as needed.
Serving Suggestions
Paella is really a complete meal with all the meat, veggies, and rice. However, you could add a side salad, a light brothy soup, or some delicious bread on the side.
I also love to pair paella with a nice glass of wine. For this dish, since it is a bit spicy and full of flavour, I like a wine that can hold up to the flavour. A nice Spanish Rioja or a Red Bordeaux would do the trick. If you like white wine, I suggest a nice Chardonnay or even a Pinot Gris. Honestly, between the chicken and chorizo, you could choose your favourite wine and it would work.
Leftover Storage and Reheat Instructions
Refrigerator: Cover with foil or place the paella into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days. If you add seafood, you should only refrigerate for 2-3 days.
Freezer: You can freeze paella in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months in a regular freezer and up to 1 year in a deep freezer.
Reheat: To reheat chicken chorizo paella, you can use a pan on the stove and reheat on low heat with a tbsp of water. You can also reheat it in the microwave with a bit of water for 15 second bursts until warmed through.
FAQs
You want to use a short-grain rice and in particular a paella rice. Most supermarkets label them ‘paella rice’ but if they are labeled with their more traditional name, you might see bomba rice or calasparra rice on the packaging. Both are the most commonly used paella rices.
I use a regular deep/large non-stick frying pan for this recipe, not a paella pan. So this recipe is super accessible to everyone. Paella pans are great for distributing heat evenly and to get a large surface area of the pan at the base, but if you follow my tips above, you’ll still get a great end result.
After the rice enters the pan, only stir to add in the other ingredients. This will maximise the socarrat as described above and as we are using a low/medium heat, this will prevent burning of the sticky bits at the bottom of the pan
While safron is the traditional spice used in paella, you can use other spices to create a similar flavour. Saffron is quite expensive which is why I use a combination of turmeric and paprika instead.
For this paella with chicken and chorizo it is soffritto, chorizo, and spices like tumeric and paprika.
Here are some other recipes using chorizo for you to try; Gnocchi with Chorizo and Vegetables, Creamy Chorizo Pasta, and Red Lentil and Chorizo burgers
If you tried this Chicken and Chorizo Paella recipe, it would mean so much to me if you could leave a review & a star rating to let me know how you found it! I love hearing about your experiences – it motivates me to keep creating more and more recipes for you guys 💛 Let’s get cooking! – Mimi x
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Easy Chicken and Chorizo Paella
Ingredients
- 1 large onion, finely diced (£0.65/3)=(£0.22)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (£0.69/3)=(£0.23)
- 110 g (½ pack) Spanish chorizo, skinned and chopped into small cubes or half moons (£2.25/2)=(£1.13)
- 300 g short-grain paella rice (£1.40)
- 400 g (1 tin) chopped tomatoes (£0.28)
- 650 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, sliced into chunks (£3.85)
- 300 g (½ bag) frozen mixed peppers (chopped), defrosted (£1.20/2)=(£0.60)
- 80 g 2 handfuls frozen peas, defrosted (£0.70/10)=(£0.07)
- 1 lemon, juiced + wedges to serve (£0.40)
CUPBOARD ESSENTIALS
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 700 ml chicken stock
Method
- Add the diced onion and olive oil into a large/deep non-stick frying pan over a low/medium heat. Season with salt and sauté for around 3 minutes, until softened.
- Next, add the chorizo to the pan and fry for a couple of minutes, adding the garlic in after the fat starts to render from the chorizo.
- Add the rice, paprika, turmeric, another pinch of salt and pepper and continue to gently fry for a couple of minutes. This will toast the rice slightly and bloom the spices.
- Next, pour the chopped tomatoes, chicken thighs and stock into the pan. Stir to combine everything, then reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover with a lid for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, stir the peppers and peas into the pan and pop the lid back on to cook for another 5 minutes.
- At this point, everything will be cooked! Finish by squeezing the juice of half a lemon (or a whole depending on preference) into the pan and seasoning with salt if necessary. Enjoy!
Notes
- Minimise stirring after adding stock to develop socarrat: Avoid excessive stirring of paella after adding the stock to enhance the formation of sticky rice at the bottom of the pan, known as socarrat. Only stir occasionally when adding peppers and peas to prevent burning.
- Remove visible fat from chicken thighs before cooking to improve texture and reduce unnecessary fat, especially when the meat is already juicy and tender.
- Ensure even heat distribution in the pan by adjusting the burner placement every five minutes on a smaller hob. Use a wide shallow pan and distribute heat evenly, resulting in the best socarrat for your chicken and chorizo paella.
Nutrition
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