Recipes from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Spicy Chicken Paella

Here's a good way to use up leftover chicken or turkey. If you don't have enough leftovers you can 'nuke' some dark meat poultry (it has more flavor than white meat) to make up the difference. It's not a 'real' paella in the sense that it's made up in a classic paella pan over an on a stove top but it's still very good

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces spicy smoked sausage (such as linguiça, andouille, or hot links), cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 1/4 cup garlic-flavored olive oil, you can 'fake' this by adding a chopped garlic clove to the pan when you heat the oil (that's what I do sometimes)
  
• 2 large yellow onions, chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cups long-grain white rice
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron
• 4 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 4 large plum tomatoes, quartered
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 1/2 cups cooked leftover turkey, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup frozen peas

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brown sausage in large skillet over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Heat olive oil in 6 1/2-quart pot over medium-high heat. This is a big pot and will look to large at the start but you need the space for the rice to expand and to create a 'dutch oven' effect. Add onions and cook until golden, stirring often, about 12 minutes. Add bell pepper; cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in rice and saffron, then next 5 ingredients. IMPORTANT, do not stir the dish after this point. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook 15 minutes. Add sausage, turkey, and peas to rice mixture. Bake paella 10 minutes and serve.

Recipes from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Garlicky Black-Pepper Shrimp and Black-Eyed Peas

Ingredients
For black-eyed peas:

• 4 bacon slices
• 4 scallions, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 1/2 medium green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/8 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
• 2 (15-ounces) cans black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
• 1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

For shrimp:

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup dry white wine

Preparation

Black-eyed peas:
Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until browned but not crisp. Transfer bacon to a plate, then tear into small pieces.

Cook scallions, carrot, celery, bell pepper, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, red-pepper flakes, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in fat in skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Add black-eyed peas and broth and simmer 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Make shrimp:
Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Season shrimp with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Cook shrimp with garlic, stirring occasionally, until just opaque (shrimp will not be fully cooked), about 3 minutes. Add wine and bring to a boil, then briskly simmer 2 minutes. Add bacon and black-eyed-pea mixture and simmer until just heated through (mixture will be juicy). Discard bay leaves.