Paella!

Ever since Christmas 2011, paella has been a somewhat regular event around here. Sometimes for birthday celebrations, sometimes just-because. It's a lot of work, but a relatively simple recipe. The fun part is that we make it in a really big pan, cooking it over coals.

Well, it's been at least two years since I made it, partially because the last time I did, I swore that I wouldn't do it again until I got a bigger pan, because apparently an 18" pan just isn't big enough for me.

I've been looking for ANY old excuse to feed a bunch of people, so when we were asked to host our church's elder team for dinner, I knew immediately what I would be cooking. And at long last, I visited my BFF Amazon, and ordered a pan a few sizes up. Oh yes...

26 inches of beautiful brushed steel for just $60. Who could resist? Well, I imagine YOU could resist, but this is ME we're talking about.

I followed my old tried-and true methods (which you can find here) with the addition of a generous dose of Paprika, and my friends, it was just about perfect. And I don't mind telling you that everyone went back for seconds, which I consider a foodie win!

One thing that I've never mentioned in all of my posts on paella is the importance of your pan being as perfectly level as you can get it. There comes a point, when you add in all the broth, that you can really tell if your pan isn't level, by which I mean, broth sloshing over the side and dousing your nice hot coals. Not a good scenario, let me tell you.

It took a full three hours to cook, from start to finish, in this larger pan, I'm not exactly sure why, because I used the same proportions as I have in the past, but it cooked up so much easier and with zero sticking. I was ready to make it again the next day.

And, as tradition holds, here is a picture of the successful chef with her successful dinner (gritting her teeth and telling the Farmboy to hurry up and takethepicturealready because thisfoodisHEAVY!).