Cooking With Elba: Sausage & Veggies Quinoa Paella Recipe

Cooking in our family is almost like breathing—it is part of our daily lives. Tom and I cook everyday, sometimes three to four times a day if we’re at home. Our kitchen is the busiest room in Maison Epperson. A good quality stove is necessary to meet the demands of our family. Our Elba Gas Range does the job.

Remember my Elba story? Well, since we’ve moved to our new house and we’ve been using our gas range now more than ever. It’s been a joy cooking with Elba.

Since I am all about spreading joy, nothing brings me more happiness than sharing easy and yummy recipes to my readers.

This dish is one of my favorites and it makes cooking it a breeze because of Elba’s fish burner—it can accommodate big pots and pans ideal for cooking big batches of food!

Sausage & Veggies Quinoa Paella

Ingredients:

1/2 pack or 3-4 pcs. of Italian sausages (I used Johnsonville Spicy Sausages), thawed if frozen and take out meat from the casings. Vegetarians can use mock meats or faux sausages.
1 tsp. paprika, divided
a pinch of saffron (around 10-12 threads)
3-4 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 pcs. fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
3 cups chicken stock, or vegetable stock, or water (I use just water whenever cooking paella)
1 carrot, chopped
1/4 cup frozen corn, thawed (you can use fresh cooked corn too)
1/4 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/8 teaspoon ground saffron or a pinch of saffron threads
1 tbsp. paprika
salt
pepper
1 handful cilantro, chopped for garnish (optional)
1 handful flat leaf parsley, chopped for garnish
1 lemon, quartered to serve with the paella

Easy peasy:

Step 1: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add onion and cook in low heat until onion softens. About 5 minutes.
Step 2: Add the tomatoes. Season with 1/2 tsp. of paprika.
Step 3: Cook the Italian sausage (taken out of the casings) for 5 minutes or till they’re brown.
Step 4: Add the tomato paste and stir into the onion, tomatoes and sausage. Cook until fragrant. About 2-4 minutes.
Step 5: Add quinoa and stir into the sofrito (the tomato paste mixture or in this case our “ginisa” ). Toast the quinoa for 2 minutes.
Step 6: Add the stock or water, remaining 1/2 teaspoon paprika, and saffron.
Step 7: Add the carrots. Stir to incorporate and the heat up and bring to a quick boil. Lower heat (you can cover it with a lid if you want). Simmer for 10 minutes.
Step 8: Remove lid. Stir in the green peas and corn and warm through. About 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper according to taste.
Step 9: Garnish with fresh cilantro and flat leaf parsley and squeeze fresh lemon juice.
Step 10: Serve with a smile! 🙂

According to paella experts, the bottom layer of rice should yield a golden caramelized crust, called socarrat. Once you’ve achieved that, you know you’ve reached the pinnacle of paella greatness.

Tip: I put the heat on high the last 1-2 minutes of cooking to get a crispy bottom layer. Also, traditional paella must have a thin layer of rice/quinoa (no thicker than a half-inch), it must feature a few other ingredients on top (but not so many as to smother the rice), and it must have been cooked and served directly in a real Spanish paella pan or paellera (if you don’t have a paella pan, just use a big heavy bottom pan. I won’t tell the paella police! LOL)

The best part about cooking is watching my family eat my homecooked meals while making fun memories.

The Epperson boys sharing a bowl of paella and playing in our living room. Watch your crumbs!!

Feng shui: According to ancient Chinese Feng Shui masters, kitchen stove represents power, wealth and prosperity in Feng Shui home. A stove takes a special place in modern kitchen design also. Its location is very important for creating comfortable and pleasant kitchen design that allows energy freely flow through home interiors.

For more information about Elba Philippines, visit their website, Facebook and follow them on Twitter and Instagram.