Alex Drake's Paella Turns Dinner Into a Party

There are dishes you make for dinner—and then there are dishes that turn dinner into a party. Alex Drake’s paella is firmly in the party camp: colorful, abundant, and created to bring a little drama to the table. 

That joyful spirit runs through everything Alex cooks. Her approach is generous and refreshingly unfussy, rooted in the belief that food should bring people together rather than become another thing to perfect. This paella captures that philosophy beautifully. It’s endlessly adaptable, can be largely prepped ahead, and feeds a crowd from one showstopping pan. The hardest part? Resisting the urge to stir.

We caught up with Alex about surrendering in the kitchen, her one rule for guests who congregate around the island, and the fantasy dinner party she’d happily recreate. Plus, she shared her chicken and shrimp paella with a smoky romesco sauce—the kind of meal that instantly gives everyone a reason to gather around the table.

photos by Michelle Nash

I approach most things in life with joy, irreverence and a childlike playfulness. It makes the world around me feel lighter and more free to explore and follow my instincts instead of worrying if I’m doing things “correctly”. This is especially true when it comes to cooking; it feels like an extension of who I am. When I’m cooking I feel a profound sense of joy and I love sharing that joy with others.

Paella is one of my favorite hosting dishes to make for SO many reasons. It’s a blank canvas of flavor, the versatility of the dish is endless, you can mix and match flavors depending on seasonality, dietary restrictions of guests, budget or what’s available to you in your local markets. I love that you can prep the dish in advance and it comes together very easily once you start to cook it. It’s a show stopping dish, big and bold it arrives on the table and really sets the tone for a meal. The thing that most people get wrong at home is that they stir their paella for fear it’s not cooking evenly. Paella is all about surrendering to the process, and trusting that the rice to broth ratio will leave you with a perfectly cooked dish every time. A Paella pan is always worth investing in.

I’m never fussed about what the table looks like, I’d much rather focus on what food goes on the table. I wish I had more of a design eye, or cared more about the table setting, but my brain loves to focus more on the food.

Great company, a fabulous outdoor setting, a mascara stained napkin from wiping away tears of laughter. The food is simple, nothing over the top, but the simplicity of quality and flavors stops you in your tracks.

I love having everyone hang out in the kitchen but they have to stay on the other side of the kitchen island. I need my space to cook.

I love bringing out a question card game to get the conversation going. It breaks the ice if people don’t really know each other

I’ve inherited a lot of beautiful cookware from my mother who is a fantastic cook herself. My most prized pieces are these oversized copper pans she got on a trip to France. They are BEYOND gorgeous and I love the fact that I can cook for a huge crowd and serve the meal all in one show stopping dish.

I love walking in nature. Whether that’s by the beach or in my garden. Leaving my phone behind and being very present always brings me back into my body.

Wait, I love this game. There are SO many options. I had the privilege of hosting Moveable Feast for 4 seasons so I’ve been lucky enough to have many many dream dinner parties in extraordinary locations. I would choose any of those dinners to recreate. My dream dinner party involves cooking over open fire, whether that’s at the beach or on a farm. Live fire makes everything feel more exciting and brings people together in a very primal way.

We are grilling beautiful seafood and dry aged giant rib eye steaks, cooking fresh hand rolled pasta in a decadent creamy chicken sausage, bitter greens and garlic pasta and martinis so cold you can see your breath in them.

We are playing 90’s R and B, hip hop and soul playlist or Soca music.

• ¼ cup olive oil

• 1 large yellow onion, diced

• 4 cloves garlic

• 2–3 large tomatoes, diced, or 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes

• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika

• Generous pinch of saffron threads

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, diced and seasoned with a pinch of salt

• 1 pound wild-caught shrimp, deveined

• 2 cups Spanish Bomba rice, also called Valencia rice*

• 1 cup bottled clam juice

• 3½ cups chicken broth

• 2 charred bell peppers, or jarred roasted peppers

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled

• ½ cup toasted pistachios, or any nut you prefer

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ cup olive oil

• Romesco sauce

• Fresh parsley

1. In a paella pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic with a generous pinch of salt for 4–5 minutes, or until the onions are soft.

2. Add the chicken and cook until brown.

3. Add the tomatoes and saffron and cook for another 2–3 minutes.

4. Sprinkle the rice into the pan and stir to combine all the flavors together.

5. Add the clam juice and chicken broth. Stir once to get everything incorporated, then cook over medium-high heat until the liquid is fully absorbed and the bottom of the pan is crispy and brown, about 15–20 minutes.

6. Three to four minutes before the paella is done, tuck the shrimp into the rice so they cook through without overcooking.

7. To make the romesco sauce, blend all the ingredients together. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.

8. Top the paella with the romesco sauce or serve it on the side. Garnish with parsley and enjoy.

Traditional paella uses a ratio of 1 cup rice to 3 cups broth. I personally like my rice more al dente, so I use a 1:2.5 ratio. If you can’t find Bomba rice, use Arborio or Calrose. You may want to begin with ½ cup less liquid, then add more as needed toward the end.