Paella is a rice dish with ancient roots that originated in the mid 19th century on the east coast of Spain. The Spaniards would be so angry with my rendition of this dish since I have found a way to omit the rice.
I am always looking for a way to enjoy delicious dishes but reduce the calories.
On average, a rice based paella with seafood typically has 350 calories per serving most of which come from the rice (average 40 gms of carbohydrates). By altering this dish a little I was able to reduce the calories to 230 total per serving and it contains zero starchy carbs.
Here is what I used:
1 red pepper, diced
1 orange pepper, diced
1 large onion, diced
2 C cherry tomatoes, chopped
1 7 oz turkey ham steak, diced
1 12 oz bag of frozen riced cauliflower
1 t garlic powder
1/2 t sea salt
1 T paprika
1 T saffron
2 raw squid, tubes and tentacles, sliced into rings
6 oz of raw shrimp
2 oz of raw sea scallops
6 raw little neck clams
olive oil cooking spray
1/4 C of chicken broth
Here is what I did:
In a large skillet coated with olive oil cooking spray, I sautéd the onions and peppers for about 8 minutes until the onions are golden brown. Added the ham and sauted for another 5 minutes. Added chicken broth to the pan and stirred to scrape any peppers, onions or ham remnants from the bottom of the skillet.
Added all the spices and stirred it up!
Brought to a boil.
Added the little neck clams and allowed to cook for 5 minutes or until slightly opened. Added the remaining fish and cooked for 5 more minutes until done. Mixed in the cauliflower and voila a low carb option that still was packed with flavor.
This recipe has 35 gms of protein, 14 gms of carbohydrates and 4 gms of fat.