Sheet Pan Paella

Over the last few years, my husband and I have moved too many times. Since 2014, we have lived in five different apartments/houses. Somehow in one of those many moves, I lost (or threw out) my paella pan. Sigh.

Paella is a favorite of mine. I love the combination of crispy rice, seafood, and spice. So when I saw this Epicurious recipe for a sheet pan version, I knew I had to try it.

I didn’t exactly stick to the original recipe, given what I could find in my post-snow supermarket. But one of the best parts about paella is you can basically throw in whatever you may have on hand to make the recipe yours! So here’s my adapted version – Sheet Pan Paella!

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup rice
• 1 3/4 cups chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon saffron, crushed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons  salt, divided
• 2 links of Spanish chorizo (about 6 oz)
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• 6 ounces medium shrimp, peeled, deviened, tails left intact
• ~2 dozen clams, scrubbed
• 1 (14 oz can) fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup jarred roasted red peppers, sliced
• 1/4 cup green olives, pitted
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced chives

Note: To make this recipe, you need two rimmed baking sheets of equal size.

Add your clams to a large bowl filled with cold water. Allow to sit for at least 20 minutes. When ready to use, remove one by one (do not pour the bowl into a colander or similar, all the sand will redeposit on the clams), and scrub if needed.

Add the chorizo links to a small pot and brown on all sides. They will not be fully cooked through. Remove from heat, let cool slightly, and slice into coins.

Thinly slice your shallot.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Drizzle the olive oil on one of the rimmed baking sheets and spread evenly with a paper towel. Add the rice on the sheet in an even layer and toast for 5 minutes.

While the rice toasts, add the broth, bay leaf, ground pepper, smoked paprika, crushed saffron, and 1 teaspoon salt to the pot you used for the chorizo and bring to a low boil. Pour into a measuring cup with a spout, making sure to get as much of the seasonings as you can.

After 5 minutes, remove the rice from the oven and stir. Add the chorizo and shallots evenly over the rice mixture and pour the broth carefully over.

Cover the baking sheet with an inverted second baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. (This will allow the rice to cook).

After 20 minutes, carefully remove the top baking sheet and stir the rice mixture. Add back to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss the shrimp with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, and discard the bay leaf. Stir the rice mixture, then scatter shrimp, clams, drained tomatoes, frozen peas, roasted red peppers and olives over the rice.

Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F and add the sheet pan back to the oven. Cook until the rice is tender, the shrimp is opaque and pink, and the clams have opened, about 12-15 minutes. If you prefer your rice on the crispy side, turn your broiler to high and broil for 1-2 minutes more.

Carefully remove the sheet pan from the oven. Discard any clams that did not open, and sprinkle the paella with chives.

What a cool way to make paella! I’m thrilled to not even need my paella pan!

I was a bit wary that the clams wouldn’t open, but, they did! And they were delicious.

The chorizo adds some nice heat to this recipe. The peas and chives work to brighten up the dish a bit. And the texture of the crispy bits of rice and the normal fluffy rice is perfect.

This recipe takes about an hour, so it may not be a good choice for a weeknight meal, but is a great option when you have the time!