Vegetarian Paella
Vegetarian Paella, a flavorful and colorful rice dish featuring a variety of vegetables.
Vegetarian Paella, a flavorful and colorful rice dish featuring a variety of vegetables.
- 1 large onion chopped
- 4 cups strong vegetable broth preferably homemade but bullion will do
- 1/4 teaspoon saffron
- 1/4 pound green beans (or 2 cups)
- 1/4 pound asparagus (or 2 cups)
- 2 carrots cut in thin slices
- 3/4 cup lima beans (i use 1 jar of trader joe's giant whit
- 6 tablespoons olive oil (enough to coat pan)
- 1 pimiento homemade or canned (homemade best)
- 3 tomatoes, chopped (skinned optional)
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and coarsely chopped (or garlic oil)
- 4 tablespoons minced parsley
- 2 cups short-grain rice (spanish bomba best but any short
- slivered blanched almonds
- 1 jar artichoke hearts (8)
- jarred spanish olives
- 1 lemon, cut in half
- salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- Carbohydrate 23.0836275 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 14.7945275 g
- Fiber 7.45082493913174 g
- Protein 9.3248725 g
- Saturated Fat 1.1759505 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Recipe (422g)
- Sodium 198.157 mg
- Sugar 15.6328025608683 g
- Trans Fat 0.761415499999999 g
- Calories 243 calories
Step-by-step
- Cook the green beans, asparagus and carrots in vegetable broth until just tender. Depending on how fresh they are the vegetables may need different cooking times, tougher one first (but remember they will cook more once with the rice so make sure not to overcook, very al dente). Add saffron and keep hot on stove.
- In a metal paella pan with about a 15-inch base, heat the oil. Sauté the onion and pimiento until the onion is wilted. Add the tomato and cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Optional: In a processor or blender, mix the almonds, garlic, and 2 tablespoons of the parsley until they are finely chopped (if you like coarser texture chop by hand).
- Add the rice to the tomato mixture and stir to coat. Stir in the garlic mixture (if used) or garlic (oil) and 2 tbls of parsley, then the beans (with juice if using TJ brand). Pour in most of the broth (boiling hot) until mixture is soupy, then add vegetables and stir. Add artichoke and olives to desired balance and stir.
- Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer, and cook 10-15 minutes, covered (with foil if necessary), until the rice is no longer soupy but some liquid remains. Stir in slivered almonds and cook 5 more minutes (add more broth if needed). Let sit 10 minutes before serving. Squeeze lemon on top, stir, and sprinkle with the remaining parsley.
- Optional: After cooking uncovered on stove at medium heat for 7 minutes, transfer to a 325° F oven and bake, uncovered, 10 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed but the rice is not quite done. Decorate with the egg wedges and artichokes, then back to the oven another 5 minutes.
- Prepare broth with onions and saffron in a separate pot
- Sauté onions until golden, add garlic
- Add carrots until a little tender
- Add rice and olive oil to toast until coated
- Add 1/2 broth mixture, bring to boil
- Cover cook over low for 5-8 minutes
- Add green beans
- Stir, cook for 8-10 minutes
- Add tomatoes and asparagus and remaining broth
- Stir, stir and cook 8-10 minutes
- Add beans
- Stir and cook 5-8 minutes
- Add water as needed
- Add peas and slivered almonds
- Rotate pan to cook edges
- Cook about 15 minutes
- Add red peppers, artichoke hearts, olives
- Cook 5 minutes, gently stir
- Turn burner off, squeeze a whole lemon on top, sit for 10 minutes
- Add tomato paste and more garlic, bay leaves, touch of curry and cumin
Boiling vegetables like asparagus, green beans, and carrots in the broth prior to combining them with the rice prevents raw-crunch issues while stopping them from turning to mush. Starch behavior dictates the final texture of the dish, meaning the rice must remain largely undisturbed once the liquid is added to encourage proper absorption without breaking the grains. Short-grain varieties such as Bomba absorb significantly more liquid than long-grain types, often requiring a ratio of up to three or four parts broth to one part rice to achieve tenderness without pastiness. Saffron threads infuse the hot broth during this initial heating phase, distributing both color and earthy compounds evenly throughout the grain bed before the fat enters the pan.
Fat distribution creates the foundation for the sofrito, where olive oil coats the metal base to fry onions and tomatoes until moisture evaporates and sugars caramelize. Stirring tomatoes frequently during this ten-minute reduction concentrates their natural glutamates, building savory depth that typically relies on meat in traditional preparations. Garlic burns easily at high heat, so incorporating it late or via an infused oil prevents bitter compounds from ruining the delicate balance of the vegetable base. Processing almonds and parsley together adds body to the pan juices when stirred into the simmering rice mixture.
Metal paella pans measuring approximately fifteen inches across provide the wide, shallow surface area necessary for optimal evaporation and the formation of the prized bottom crust known as socarrat. Alternative wide skillets work adequately if traditional carbon steel or enameled pans are unavailable, provided the heat source distributes energy evenly to the edges of the cooking vessel. Rotating the pan periodically on the burner prevents hot spots from scorching individual sections of the rice while neighboring areas remain undercooked. Covering the pan with foil during the final simmering phase traps steam, ensuring the upper layers of grain cook through without requiring excess liquid.
Resting the finished dish off the heat for ten minutes allows residual moisture to redistribute evenly through the grains, firming up the individual starches. Squeezing fresh lemon juice over the surface just before serving cuts through the rich olive oil and brightens the accumulated vegetable flavors. Garnishing with artichoke hearts, olives, and slivered almonds introduces contrasting textures against the tender rice bed. Allowing the dish to sit undisturbed during this resting window is critical for achieving a clean scoopable portion rather than a loose risotto-like consistency.
