As I mentioned in my last post, I’m having fun exploring the new Trader Joe’s in New Orleans. I asked everyone on Instagram to share their favorite products with me so I could sample the best the store had to offer and one item that was suggested multiple times was their frozen seafood paella. While the paella wasn’t bad, I was a little underwhelmed, and after glancing at the ingredient list I knew I could make something similar at home. And that’s how this super easy Seafood Rice Skillet was born.
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Inspired by Paella, but NOT Paella.
Why is mine a “skillet” and not a paella? Well, for multiple reasons, but the main reasons being that
A) I did not use saffron ($$$)
B) I used long grain rice, and
C) I made it in a skillet and not a paella pan. I like to change recipes to work for me and these changes were made to fit my budget, ingredient availability, and cooking style. But guess what? This Seafood Rice Skillet is still amaze-balls. Not a term I normally use, but totally fitting here.
What Kind of Seafood Can be Use for This Seafood Rice Skillet?
I used the frozen seafood mix from Trader Joe’s (shrimp, scallops, and calamari), but if you can’t find something similar near you, you can totally use just shrimp alone. If you can find a seafood broth, or maybe a little clam juice, you can sub some of that in for part of the chicken broth and have this be even more seafood-y.
What Kind of Rice Should I Use?
This recipe was written using long grain white rice, but using short grain is more in line with paella. If you happen to have short grain rice, you can use that in place of the long grain, but make sure to adjust the broth to rice ratio to match the directions on the package.
Alright, ready to see this super easy and impressive skillet meal??
Seafood Rice Skillet
Servings 4 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.22)
- 1 onion ($0.25)
- 2 cloves garlic ( $0.16)
- 1 red bell pepper ($1.00)
- 1/2 Tbsp turmeric ($0.15)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.02)
- 2 cups uncooked long grain white rice ($1.12)
- 3 cups chicken broth* ($0.41)
- 1 cup frozen peas ($0.48)
- 1/2 lb frozen seafood mix ($4.00)
- 1 fresh lemon ($0.59)
- Handful fresh parsley, chopped ($0.20)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the olive oil, onion, and garlic to a large deep skillet. Sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and transparent (about 5 minutes). Meanwhile, dice the red bell pepper. Add the diced bell pepper to the skillet and sauté for 1-2 minutes more.
- Add the uncooked rice, turmeric, smoked paprika, and cayenne to the skillet. Stir to combine. Pour in the chicken broth, stir briefly, then place a lid on the skillet.
- Turn the heat up to high and bring the broth to a boil. Once it reaches a full boil, turn the heat down to low and let simmer for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, add the frozen seafood and frozen peas. Fold the seafood and peas into the skillet, then replace the lid. Let the seafood and peas cook over low heat until the shrimp turn pink (about 5-10 minutes). Stir once half way through to check the seafood buried in the rice for doneness.
- Once the seafood has finished cooking, top the skillet with chopped parsley and serve with lemon wedges. Squeeze the lemon juice over top of the seafood rice just before eating.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Love skillet meals? Check out my Greek Turkey and Rice Skillet, Chorizo Sweet Potato Skillet, or Creamy Salsa Chicken Skillet.
How to Make Seafood Rice Skillet – Step by Step Photos
Begin by dicing one onion and mincing two cloves of garlic. Add the onion and garlic to a large deep skillet along with 2 Tbsp olive oil. Sauté the onion and garlic until the onion are soft and transparent.
While the onion and garlic are sautéing, dice a red bell pepper. Add the bell pepper to the skillet and continue to sauté for 1-2 minutes more.
Add 2 cups uncooked long-grain white rice, 1/2 Tbsp turmeric, 1 tsp smoked paprika, and 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper.
Stir until everything is well coated in spices.
Add 3 cups of chicken broth to the skillet, place a lid on top, and turn the heat up to high. Let the skillet come to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let simmer on low for 15 minutes.
This is the seafood blend that I used. It’s a mix of shrimp, scallops, and calamari. I used half of this bag, or 1/2 lb. If you can’t find something similar to this, you can use just shrimp.
After simmering on low for 15 minutes, most of the broth should be absorbed by the rice. Add 1/2 lb. of the frozen seafood mix and 1 cup frozen peas. Seafood cooks very quickly, even from frozen, so you don’t want to add it before the rice is cooked. Over cooking seafood makes it very tough.
Fold the seafood and peas into the cooked rice, place the lid back on top of the skillet, and let it cook over low heat for another 5-10 minutes, or until the shrimp have turned pink and opaque. You may need to stir once halfway through to check the doneness of the shrimp buried in the rice.
Once the seafood is cooked through, top the Seafood Rice Skillet with chopped parsley and lemon wedges.
Squeezing fresh lemon over the top of your bowl really gives this dish a nice fresh POP, so don’t skip it! :)
Made it for dinner added sazon no peas an it was great used walmart seafood bag great price great quality great recipe.
If you’re thinking to yourself, I am sick of eating a rotation of chicken and beef, let’s do paella because maybe my toddler will love it and you bought a bag of scallops for $35 from the grocery store, I’m telling you to move on from this recipe right now my friend. The toddlers will scream. Your teeth will crunch through gritty, nasty, budget bag scallops. Was it the scallops’ fault? Absolutely? Did really plain, non-exciting rice help its cause? No, it did not. Unless you are getting your seafood from a high quality place, move along on this recipe.
It’s was excellent…we had enough for three nights as there is only my hubby and myself..the third night I purchased 6 large scallops which I pa fried with butter and garlic and just added it as a side..Will make this many times in the future..
Mary Hutcheson
Really excellent recipe – easy and delicious!
Can I make this recipe-up to putting in the seafood-ahead of time , and then add the seafood after warming the rice mixture, later? And can I freezer what is left?
And if so how would you suggest I reheat it?
I hope you get this ASAP as I would like to make it tonight for my sweetheart!
Thanks so Joy
Joysicle@aol.com
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Hi Joy! I hope everything worked out for you! I think you could absolutely freeze this if you have leftovers. I would reheat this one on the stove over low heat to ensure that the seafood doesn’t get too tough.
So, so good. And easy. I didn’t have bell peppers at home so put a chopped tomato in there instead. Used homemade chicken stock and basmati rice. Loved by everyone including our toddler. This will for sure become a staple meal in our house. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
I followed the recipe by the 2 person portion. Used all of the spices to letter. However, I used homemade chicken stock so I had to add a little salt. I used 1 lb of frozen muscles and 2 frozen filets of tilapia and a cup of frozen corn. Along with the onion and garlic this came out wonderful. When I sauted the onion and garlic I added about 3 tablespoons of diced andoulie sausage. This turned out magical and without this recipe to guide me, I’m sure it would have been an embarrassing fail. I didn’t have lemon so I used to mini oranges, cuties, however I added that fresh squeeze with the broth
I followed the recipe by the 2 person portion. Used all of the spices to letter. However, I used homemade chicken stock so I had to add a little salt. I used 1 lb of frozen muscles and 2 frozen filets of tilapia and a cup of frozen corn. Along with the onion and garlic this came out wonderful. When I sauted the onion and garlic I added about 3 tablespoons of diced andoulie sausage. This turned out magical and without this recipe to guide me, I’m sure it would have been an embarrassing fail.
One of the best an easy rice recipes I’ve had the pleasure of cooking. Everyone rave over the dish it will be a permanent staple in my kitchen Thx’s so much for sharing Beth!!!!
I love to have Seafood Rice recipes it’s good know how to use the recipe for Seafood. Thanks looking forward to trying it out. Good to use recipes like this 👌 😋
Does the have to be washed
I made it without the seafood to serve alongside Dungeness crab. It was the perfect side. It’s smoky and colorful. Very yum.
I loved this recipe.
This was a surprise, we thoroughly enjoyed it and will be using the rice recipe with a lot of different things. Thank you so much it was absolutely something to repeat!
I’ve attempted to make this dish twice and both times the rice has been undercooked. Any suggestions on how I can fix that problem? Other than that it smells great, but hasn’t been edible.
Hi Curly, without being there while you cook, it’s difficult to say what is going wrong. But, I’m guessing you could be dealing with a couple of issues. Make sure you are using long grain white rice. Brown and wild rice have longer cooking times and different ratios of rice to liquid. Also, make sure the pan remains covered through out the cook. The more that steam escapes, the less cooking liquid you have, and the less your rice will cook. Also, make sure you lower the heat as soon as the liquid comes to a boil. If you cook at high heat the whole time, it’s just as counter productive as cooking with the lid off. Hope that helps! XOXO -Monti
I don’t think 9 servings can be right for this recipe—is it?
Definitely a typo. Thanks for catching that! It’s all fixed now. :)
Thanks! Looking forward to trying it!
I topped this with TJ’s Zhong Sauce – amazing! Highly recommend!
I was combing through the comments to see if anyone asked about fresh seafood instead of frozen, but nothing.
At what point would you add the seafood if using fresh instead of frozen?
I’d probably add it at about the same point. Seafood cooks very quickly, so you wouldn’t want to add it any sooner.
Perfect! Thanks 😊
Hi. I would love to try this recipe. What can I substitute chicken broth with.
Thank you :)
that is one of the many typical Peruvian dishes.
Rice with seafood.
Hi!
Is basmati rice good for this or should I use jasmine rice?
Basmati would probably be great. :)
Looks easy to prepare and delicious. I like rice.
This rice came out GREAT! I purchased the seafood mix at my local grocery store which was okay, but I added more shrimp to the rice as well.
Thank you for sharing and I will definitely be making again!!
Hi Beth, Just tried this and it came out great, my wife loved it. I went and bought your app and was looking for this recipe on budget bytes, so I can’t post my photo. Anyway thanks for the recipes I’ll definitely try more.
I really love this recipe but the only thing I did differently was I use smoked paprika (only because that is what I have and didn’t want to go and get regular paprika). I couldn’t stop eating! Thanks for this.
Correction. Disregard my comment about the paprika.
The flavor was amazing however the rice ended up being very sticky once the frozen Seafood went in. What could I have done different?
It’s hard to say without watching your technique, but my guess is that it was stirred too much. With rice you have to be really careful to just fold it and fluff it without working it too much because stirring will make it break down and get sticky.
Hmm, we messed up somewhere. We set it to simmer for the 15 min and 7 min in all the liquid was gone and the rice was still crunchy. So we added another cup of broth. Fingers crossed it comes out right!
Its good! I added only 1 cup of rice and the whole bag of seafood because I like alot of seafood! Adding some salt makes it taste better!
Blend.
I added saffron, 1 more garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Still I was missing flavor. I’m Latina, used to paella and seafood rice rich and flavorful. I would not even try it without tweaking it like I did. I figured needed a boost once I tasted the liquid after adding the rice and spices from the recipe.
How would you recommend cooking with cauliflower rice instead?
Unfortunately this one won’t work the same with cauliflower rice because it does not absorb liquid the way regular rice does, so there is not any way to do an easy swap with that ingredient. While there may be a way to do it, it would definitely take several rounds of testing to get it right.
PIPER — 11.03.19 @ 8:27 PM REPLY
Blend.
I added saffron, 1 more garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Still I was missing flavor. I’m Latina, used to paella and seafood rice rich and flavorful. I would not even try it without tweaking it like I did. I figured needed a boost once I tasted the liquid after adding the rice and spices from the recipe.
For me there seemed to be something missing. Maybe I did something wrong with the recipe! Anyway when it was cooked I chucked in a can of coconut milk, just folded it in for a couple of minutes. Man that hit the spot for me!
Can this be modified to an Instant Pot?
Probably, but unfortunately I can’t offer any advice on how to do so without doing some testing.
I’ve made this numerous times and for different company. Everybody loves it! I follow the recipe and do add a bottle of clam juice which is a cheap and easy way to add extra seafood flavour. Love this recipe and cooking it again tonight. Thank you for sharing this one.
I’m using wild rice, sweet peppers and red onion. For the meat I’m using octopus, shrimp, and bay scallops. All easy to gather in my area of Seattle. Needed to take more time to cook the rice but over all turned out beautifully. My first time eating octopus besides fried and my husband and I eat tons of fish so an easy weeknight sub for our typical salmon halibut or trout.
I made this on Saturday and it was great! I used yellow rice instead and I did use the seafood blend from Trader Joe’s but it was not enough for me. I will definitely makes this dish again but with bigger shrimp and scallops. Thank you for sharing.
This was my first time making seafood rice and it came out great. I couldn’t find a seafood blend so I bought a 1/4lb of precooked shrimp and crab meat. Because I had everything else at home, except for broth, it was still a very affordable and delicious meal. Thank you
When making your rice recipes how difficult would it be to tweak them and use brown rice?
When swapping brown rice for white rice in recipes, you need to increase both the cooking time and the liquid ratio. That can take some testing to get just right in one pan recipes like this.
There wasn’t a seafood mix at my store so I used scallops. I also chose Basmati for the rice. Everything else I followed to a T and it came out perfectly! Thanks so much for this!
I cooked the Seafood Rice Skillet yesterday. I did not use peas. Instead, I used 1 can of Collard Greens. And I also added Cajun Seasoning and I did not have lemon wedges so I poured 1/4 cup of lemon blend over the rice instead. I used Jasmine Rice. I thought my blend had shrimp: It had Squid, Octopus, and Imitation Crab Meat. It was soo very delicious. Also how do you become a professional recipe writer. I have a lot of recipes of my own.
I write recipes. How to become a professional recipe writer. And I am making this dish today. I may add Cajun Seasoning and leafy greens instead of the peas.
don’t have turmeric, can I substitute an ingredient??
No, unfortunately that is one of the cornerstone flavors in this recipe, so I wouldn’t suggest substituting it.
Can this be made with Cauliflower rice? I’m a Type 1 diabetic and have to watch my carb count.
It would have to be altered quite a bit to work with cauliflower because rice absorbs moisture as it cooks, whereas cauliflower releases moisture as it cooks.
I love your recipes!
I would like to make this for 30 people and I don’t have a really big skillet to cook it in, what would be your recommendation?
Yikes, I’m not sure. Unfortunately I’ve never cooked anything in that large of a batch.
Hotel pan like they use in restaurants
Great meal!!! Really enjoyed it, thank you!
If I wanted to reduce the amount of rice, how would I reduce the amount of liquid? I.e. could I cook 1 cup of rice with 1 cup broth? Thanks.
I usually do a 1:1.5 ratio of rice to liquid, so if you’re doing 1 cup rice I’d do 1.5 cups broth.
Loved it so did hubby it was simple and easy to make thank you
Going to make with rice cauliflower
Going to have to lower cooking time
Will report back.
Made this twice now, once with seafood and once with just the rice as a side dish. Very tasty!
I made this last week, and it is fantastic. I added a chopped up chicken breast (and began cooking that a couple minutes before the onions went in), and I used Better Than Bouillon Lobster Base rather than Chicken. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. I’m making it again today. I may add a bit more seafood than called for.
8ounds great
I saw a comment on the brown rice. What about quinoa?
never mind! I saw a quinoa one too! I will try it with rice!!
can you please give instructions on cooking times wihen doubling the recipe? Thank you! My family loves this.
That’s tricky. It will probably take a little longer to come up to a simmer, but once it does the cook time should be about the same. It’s hard to say exactly without testing it.
I doubled the recipe and used long grain brown rice. I found that I needed to give an additional 10 minutes simmer time before adding the seafood. That may have been because of the brown rice or the doubling not sure.
Delicious recipe, but it needed acid, so I added some diced cherry tomatoes along with the pepper, and I also added some chopped up sausage. Yum!
Another great recipe! I made this on Friday for a casual get-together/kitchen hangout. It was so easy and came together really quickly. Best of all, cleanup was super fast since it’s just one pot! Dishes are my least favorite part of hosting, so the fact that I did minimal cleaning and got to spend more time enjoying the company was great.
We used tricolor frozen bell peppers from Trader Joe’s, which was a nice little time saver. At $2 a bag, and about 3+ peppers’ worth, it’s also a bit cheaper than buying them fresh. We also threw in some grape tomatoes, which gave the dish a nice pop of flavor every few bites. I thought it needed some salt although I didn’t use a low sodium broth. A drizzle of soy sauce did the trick.
I will definitely be making this again–maybe I will try making it with brown rice next time, of course adjusting the liquid and cooking time.
You should do a Trader Joe’s challenge like you did with your food stamp one. It would be great to see what you would put together, on a budge, from Trader Joe’s. They have some great stuff but I am at a loss sometimes on how to pull it all together.
Seconding this idea!
I like a lot of their stuff, but I don’t think I could do ALL my shopping there. They just don’t have enough variety and they have far more “convenience” products than from-scratch type ingredients.
Yum! What a smart dinner. It’s not too complicated and it’s healthy. Thanks for sharing!
I have not tried this blend of seafood at Trader Joe’s. I didn’t know they had it there either.
I will give it a try, this recipe looks great, and not too difficult to make.
I have tried frozen calamari in a tomato broth from a local market near me. (I bought
just the frozen calamari there, no blend) and that was delicious.
I can’t wait to try this recipe! Thank you!
How does this seafood mix end up tasty? I’ve had some poor experiences with previously frozen shrimp, namely that they all cook up to be incredibly chewy, even when not overdone. Thanks!
They weren’t too chewy. The scallops in particular were nice and tender. I noticed that the most. :)
I made this dish without the seafood mix, but added more peas and some frozen corn as well (keeping it veg). It was a great, satisfying bowl with just the right amount of zip from the spices. For me, the key was adding a squeeze of lemon right before serving plus the brightness of a fresh herb (cilantro instead of parsley, because it’s what I had). I will definitely make this again! And better still, I have leftovers for lunch.
Could you use brown rice with this?
I wouldn’t. I think the flavor would overshadow what is going on in the rest of the dish. Also, brown rice needs more liquid and a longer cooking time, so it wouldn’t be a straight substitution.
Would this be a sufficient meal without the shrimp? I’m vegetarian and I’m trying to make this meatless just don’t know if the shrimp absorbs some of the broth or not. Do you think omitting the shrimp all together would affect the outcome of the dish?
The seafood doesn’t absorb any of the broth, so you’ll be fine in that regard. It might have a little less flavor and variety, but it would still be decent. You might want to check out my Spanish Chickpeas and Rice, or my Tomato Herb Rice with White Beans and Spinach. Both are rice dishes similar to this, but have beans to make it more of a complete meal. :)
This looks so delicious! Would it work with quinoa as well?
It probably wouldn’t work the same, unfortunately.
Could I use wild rice instead of jasmine? I’m trying to eat healthy and this is the only rice I have on hand.
It would definitely need some adjustment. Wild rice needs a different liquid ratio and probably has a different cooking time than white rice.
Oh, my gosh, this is such a beautiful dish! A real ray of sunshine on this grey day. Thanks, Beth!
Looks amazing Beth! A delicious meal that doesn’t cost much. loved the food styling.
I am in love!!! Keep the tj’s knockoffs coming!
I thought Trader Joe’s Paella was incredibly bland. I’m shocked anyone even suggested it.
Can’t wait to try this!
I’ve never used saffron ever- would a little touch of it be worth it? When would I add it?
You’d add it with the rest of the spices. I haven’t really cooked with it, so I’m not sure how potent it is, but I DO know that the saffron is a big part of what makes paella paella. :)
Saffron threads are very expensive..and although it is different than turmeric, most palettes are not sophisticated enough to detect the addition of saffron.
If you have saffron, use a couple of threads. If not, you can keep the amount of turmeric the same or add a dash more turmeric and a dash more smoked paprika to the paella. Smoked paprika is equally as important to paella as is saffron.
It seems so simple, yet totally delicious! Love the clear, bright photos too. Budget proof dinners is something I as student can definitely use!
Hi Beth,
Do you think that this would work with either chicken breasts or boneless thighs? I am severely allergic to shellfish, but this sounds both really good and comforting. Thank you! : )
I was thinking I’d do this with chicken as well (I’m not allergic – I just don’t like seafood). My initial thought was to precook the chicken thighs because they don’t cook as quickly as the seafood would.
Yep! I would do chicken thighs because they stay nice and tender. You can cook them right in the pot with the rice. You might even try browning them in the skillet before cooking the onion and garlic (remove the thighs to do the onion and garlic, then add them back in with the rice, spices, and broth).
Did you use jasmine rice as your long grain rice?
I did.
omg I left TJ’s to get long grain rice at our local grocery store. I wish I had read this before shopping!!