Mike's Pantry Paella

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 1/2 cups chopped red onions
• 4 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 1/2 cup sliced cucumber (or in half-moon slices, preferred)
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped roasted red pepper (from the jar is fine)
• 1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts, drained
• 1/3 cup halved pitted large green olives
• 3 large garlic cloves, pressed
• 2 cups converted rice (such as uncle ben's)
• 1/4 teaspoon generous good quality saffron thread
• salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cajun-spiced fresh sausages (about 3/4 pound)
• 13 1/2 ounces peeled tomatoes, drained
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 4 super-jumbo shrimp (approx 1 1/3 pound)
• 3 scallions, cut into 1-inch pieces

Recipe

• 1 put 2 tablespoons olive oil into very large skillet (a paella pan is best) and add the chopped red onion, sauté until partially browned, about 8 to 10 minutes.
• 2 meanwhile, in another skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat and add mushrooms and celery and sauté for 5 minutes.
• 3 add the diced cucumber to the mushroom mixture and sauté an additional 5 minutes.
• 4 add mushroom mixture into the onion mixture in the large skillet, along with roasted red pepper, artichoke, olives, garlic, rice, saffron, and salt and pepper (to taste), and sauté for 7 minutes.
• 5 meanwhile, in another pan (you can use the one from the mushroom mixture), sauté the fresh sausage until browned, about 5 minutes.
• 6 add browned sausage, tomatoes, and broth to the large skillet, stir and simmer for 5 minutes (do not stir after this point).
• 7 top mixture with the shrimp and scallions and simmer for an additional 10 minutes or until the rice is done and the super-jumbo shrimp are pink and cooked through - you can cover it for the last 5 minutes to help the shrimp cook through, if necessary.
• 8 serve immediately.