Summer Paella

Well I came across this recipe I used when I had friends around last summer. It's true to say I've had some disasters with paella in the past, turning out more like risotto. This recipe is foolproof and tastes divine!

350g paella rice
A good glug (about 2 tablespoons) of olive oil
About 1.2kg of chicken joints (I used drumsticks and thighs), skin on. (free range tastes best in this, especially corn fed)
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 red pepper, deseeded and chopped into chunks
About 1/2 of a chorizo sausage in a piece, skin removed and cut into 1 cm chunks.
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed (I use 3 normally, but I like garlic)
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
About half a sachet of saffron, best way I found to get the colour out is use a pestle and mortar to grind it into dust then mix with a little bit of hot water.
1 very large red tomato skinned and roughly diced (I use those beef tomatoes)
A pack of fresh peeled uncooked king prawns (about 300g pack should do it)
A cup full of frozen peas
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Heat the oil in the pan (I use a saute pan with a lid, though you can use any large pot) over a fairly high heat. Season the chicken joints with salt and pepper the fry until golden brown, then remove them to a plate.

Next add the onion, pepper and chorizo and fry these over a medium heat for about 6 minutes, or until they're nicely tinged brown at the edges. Now add the garlic, paprika, cayenne and saffron and cook for another minute, then put the chicken to the pan, followed by the chopped tomato, plenty more salt and pepper and 2 pints of boiling water. Bring everything up to a gentle simmer, turn the heat down and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes

After that, remove the chicken pieces again, then pour the rice into the centre of the pan. Bring everything back up to the boil, give a final stir and simmer, still uncovered, for about 10 minutes. Keep shaking the pan every one and a while just to stop it sticking.

Now put the chicken along with the prawns and peas back into the pan and continue to simmer for about 20 minutes, after that just taste it to make sure the rice is cooked. If it starts to look really dry add a splash more water. After the rice has cooked, take off the heat, and place the lemon wedges on top. Cover with the pans lid (or a teacloth!) for about 5 minutes just for it to absorb the steam.

Serve!