Chicken Paella

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, any color, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup asparagus, cut into 1” pieces

1/3 cup frozen peas, thawed

2 cups cooked saffron rice (instructions below)

Remaining saffron rice liquid

1 tsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste

1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped

For saffron rice:

In a sauce pan add 2 cups chicken broth; add 1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed saffron.  Season broth and saffron mixture with salt to taste; add 1 cup rice.  Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and is cooked most of the way through (there should be a little liquid remaining and a slight crisp to the rice).  Remove from heat and set aside (leave covered to keep warm).

Directions:

In a large, deep sauté pan (or paella pan if you have one) heat olive oil; season both sides of chicken thighs and place in heated pan.  Cook until chicken is browned on both sides and cooked most of the way through; remove from pan and set aside.  Place onions, bell pepper, and garlic in pan; cook until softened.  Add asparagus and peas; cook until slightly softened.  Add rice, remaining liquid, oregano, red pepper flakes, and additional salt and pepper (if needed) to pan; stir to thoroughly mix.  Add chicken back into the pan as well as the sundried tomatoes.  Cover and cook mixture until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are crisp tender (about 5 minutes).  Serve warm and enjoy!

McCormick does sell a fairly affordable bottle (0.06 oz) of saffron.  It may not seem like a lot for the money, but remember saffron is the most expensive spice in the world!  You also do not need a lot of saffron for most recipes.  This takes only two small pinches from the package so you WILL have enough for at least one more recipe.  If you cannot find saffron, you can substitute turmeric (for color NOT taste).  Just use about 1 tsp (or 4 times as much) turmeric when substituting for saffron.  For this recipe do not boil rice with turmeric, simply add it to the pan and stir to coat when you add the rice.

Serves 6.  7 Weight Watchers points per serving (1 piece of chicken per person and 1/3 cup rice mixture).