I get my pans from tienda.com. Prices are decent and service is good. They also tend to have sales on them... so keep an eye out. I think they have a few on sale now actually. The one in the picture is either a 22 or 26 inch. A 15inch will also work nice on just about any grill (I can do 2 side by side on my gasser if I'm making different flavored rice dishes). A 32 inch pan is huge and is great if your going to do a big party.... you may need to cook over an open fire though as it is that big.
You should dive in, you don't necessarily need the Paella to make a decent dish. Any wide shallow pan will do. Just remember less is more. It is about the rice not the stuff:
-Ingredients should only be added for purposes of flavoring the rice. Which also means you cook the other ingredients before you add the water... that's what makes the 'stock'
- Overcrowding the pan with other ingredients will negatively affect how the rice cooks up (ie. getting the different layers/textures of rice)
There are a lot of other nuances to it, but those are the most important points IMHO.
BTW.. the rice is also important. Use a medium grain rice. The Spanish rices are perfect as they absorb a lot of water, maintain their integrity and aren't too starchy. Again, Tienda is great place to buy them and often they do have sales on the good stuff. In order of preference/recommendation (first three are from Tienda, rest are from the supermarket if you are in a pinch):
- Bomba rice (super expensive though, I only buy when on sale)
- Calasparra rice
- Generic "Paella Rice" reasonable priced, available from Tienda
- Goya medium grain rice
- Arborio or other short grain Italian rice
- Use long grain and make Jambalaya instead
- Use Basmati and make Biryani instead
