Mom's Paella

6 - 8 medium sized raw shrimp, in shell
6 small hard-shelled clams
6 mussels
3 links Spanish chorizo, sliced into ½” rounds
6 boneless chicken thigh meat, cut in chuncks
2 Lobster Tails (optional)
2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup plus 3 Tbsp olive oil
3 ouncles lean boneless pork, cut in ¼” inch cubes (small)
1/2 cup onions, finely chopped
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut in julienne strips
1 large tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped or 1 can diced tomatoes
3 cups Arborio rice
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground saffron (grind threads in a mortar)
6 cups boiling water
1/2 cup fresh peas
6-8 lemon wedges

Clean and de-vein shrimp, leaving tails intact. Scrub clams and mussels well, and remove the "beards" from the mussels. Remove lobster from the shell, cut tail crosswise into 1 inch slices, and split the body in half lengthwise, then crosswise into quarters. Set aside.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken in 3 Tbsp of olive oil until it becomes a rich golden brown. Remove to plate. Add the lobster to the oil remaining in the skillet and cook 2-3 minutes till pink. Lightly brown sausage slices in same fashion.

Discarding fat remaining in skillet and add 1/4 cup olive oil. Make a sofrito with the pork, garlic, onions, red pepper and tomato. Stirring constantly, cook until most of the liquid in pan evaporates. The mixture will be thick like runny paste. Set aside.

In a large pot combine the sofrito, rice, 1 teaspoon salt and the saffron. Pour in the boiling water, and stirring constantly, bring to the boil over high heat. Remove the pan from heat and taste to correct seasoning. Pour mixture into your paella pan.

Arrange the chicken, lobster, sausage, shrimp, clams and mussels on top of the rice and scatter the peas at random over the whole. Set the pan in bottom part of oven and bake uncovered for about 30 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed. At no point should the paella be stirred after it goes in the oven. If your paella pan is too large to fit in the oven, you can do this on top of the stove. Just seal your pan really well with foil.

When the paella is done, removed from stove and leave foil on and let it rest for 5-8 minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve at the table directly from the pan.