Paella is a one of the world's most famous rice dishes, and this version is a seafood extravaganza. But the most fun is to use up what's in your refrigerator or freezer.
Traditionally, paella is prepared in a paellera (a wide, shallow pan with looped handles) and cooked over an outdoor fire. However, it's easy to cook paella to authentic perfection in your own kitchen over the stovetop. The following paella recipe serves 4, and for best results cook in a 14 or 15-inch paellera. A large shallow frying pan makes an acceptable substitute.

• 1 onion, preferrably red
• 1 red pepper
• 1 green pepper
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley
• 2 ripe tomatoes, or canned peeled tomatoes
• 16 large shrimp or mussels or squid tubes or sausage
• paprika, preferrably smoked
• pinch of safron
• rice: Spanish Calasparra or Bomba or Arborio or regular medium-grained rice
• 3 cups of chicken stock, heated
• lemon wedges to squeeze over while serving or eating

1 Chop the vegetables

Finely chop 1 red onion, dice 1 red and 1 green pepper (capsicum), finely chop 4 cloves of garlic, and finely chop 2 tablespoons of fresh flat-leaf parsley.

2 Puree the tomatoes

Using a box grater, puree 2 ripe tomatoes (vine-ripened are best), discarding the skin. Alternatively you can use a cup of canned peeled tomatoes mashed with a fork.

3 Prepare the seafood

Peel and devein 16 large raw shrimp (prawns), cut 2 squid tubes into rings, and scrub and debeard 12 fresh mussels. Cover and refrigerate. (Alternately, use sausage, cut up)

4 Make the sofrito

Sofrito is a Spanish tomato and onion sauce which is used as a flavor base for a variety of dishes, including paella.

To make the sofrito, heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in the paella pan over a medium heat and cook the chopped red onion, 2 tablespoons of parsley and 3 of the chopped garlic cloves for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the pureed tomatoes and 2 teaspoons of paprika (preferably Spanish smoked paprika) and cook until all the liquid from the tomatoes has evaporated and the sofrito has the consistency of jam. Transfer the sofrito to a small bowl and wipe clean the paella pan.

5 Cook the diced red and green peppers

Heat 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in the paella pan over a medium heat and cook the diced red and green peppers for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6 Add the rice

Add the sofrito back to the pan along with 1½ cups of Spanish Calasparra or Bomba rice (regular medium-grain rice makes a good substitute) and cook for a minute, stirring to coat the grains.

7 Add hot stock, saffron, salt and pepper and cook without stirring

Add 3 cups of heated fish or chicken stock, a pinch of saffron threads, 1½ teaspoons sea salt and ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine, and bring to a rolling simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, uncovered without stirring. (To make sure the rice cooks evenly you will need to regularly move the paella pan around the heat source, or you can stradle the paella pan over two burners.)

8 Lower the heat and continue cooking

Now's the time to add meat: andouille, sausage, chorizo. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for a further 15 minutes without stirring.

With 5 minutes left, push the reserved shrimp, mussels and squid into the cooked rice, and scatter with half a cup of defrosted green peas or okra. Cover the pan with foil or a clean cloth, and let the paella rest for 5 minutes.

After 15 minutes, turn the heat up to medium-high for a minute or so until you can smell the rice toasting at the bottom, then remove the paella pan from the heat. (The toasted rice bottom of a paella is called socorrat and is highly prized.)

9 Serve with lemon wedges

Present the paella in the pan at the table with lemon wedges on the side for drizzling.