paella-style chicken and rice.

this is easy to make and yummy to the tummy. i found it in People magazine and it is from mario lopez. yes, the mario lopez of saved by the bell. apparently he wrote a cookbook. this is one of the recipes.

a picture of the picture in people magazine.

ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 oz. andouille chicken sausage or 1 oz. andouille pork sausage (i did not see this type of sausage, so i just used bratwurst. and i used the whole 16 oz. package).
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery (i did not feel like buying celery, so i used carrots
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 tsp saffron or 1 tsp italian seasoning (i used the italian seasoning)
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into large chunks
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed (i used a whole package)
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• chopped fresh parsley and scallions to taste

directions

1. heat oil in a large saute pan or skillet. add sausage and cook for 3 minutes, crushing the sausage with a wooden spoon. 
2. add onion, celery, and salt. saute for 3 minutes.
3. stir in brown rice. stir saffron into chicken broth and add to pan. bring to a boil and add chicken.
4. cover and cook for 30 to 35 minutes, until all liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender. (i had to add about 1/2 cup water and cook for an additional 15 minutes.)
5. stir in peas and sliced bell pepper. (i put these in at the same time as i put in the extra 1/2 cup of water in step 4.)
6. serve in bowls, topped with parsley and scallions (i just mixed the parsley and scallions into the whole pot of food). enjoy!!