A Very Vegan Paella + Video
Vegan Paella! Isn’t it just the most beautiful looking thing?
Rice, vegetables, saffron broth, and tomatoes. Mmmm… I had to hide the rest of the pan so BL and I didn’t accidentally consume the whole thing.
We’ve been to Barcelona a few times, spending a week there just a few years ago and while I know that paella isn’t considered a Catalonian dish, we ate our body weight in vegetarian paella that vacation and I’ve been making it at home every since.
A Very Vegan Paella
I don’t know if this is authentic, but’s it’s pretty darn tasty. My sister worked in a Spanish restaurant for years, so in addition to our Spanish travels I consider myself an unofficial connoisseur of tapas, tempranillo wine, and vegetarian paella. This is about as good as it gets.
A word on the rice: I used Arborio rice in this, not Bomba. Before you throw a shoe at me, here’s my excuse: St. Louis is not ready for paella making. After heading to three different grocery stores to find this special short-grained white rice, I was 0 for 3.
And you know what? I really couldn’t tell a difference. I’ve heard of people using sushi rice and rinsing it a few times before hand, but I wasn’t in the mood for that kind of work. As an Italian babe, I’ve always got risotto rice lying around and it works perfectly in this dish.
However, long grain rice won’t work the same.
Another important consideration in paella making is a proper pan. A wide, shallow dish is best for this so break out your biggest sauté or frying pan and don’t overload it. Watch how I make it in the video below!
I actually use my large grill pan and it worked perfectly. If you really want to imagine that you are in Spain, then I recommend serving this with romesco sauce & bread for an appetizer and Red Wine Sangria to wash it all down.
Video
A Very Vegan Paella
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 8 ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
- 2 red peppers, seeded and chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 medium zucchini, chopped
- 3 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 1 pinch saffron threads
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 1/2 cups short-grain white rice, see note
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- pinch salt, will depend on how salty your broth is
- 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
- 1 lemon, sliced
Instructions
- In a paella pan or large, shallow sauté’ pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, red pepper, and roasted red pepper to the pan and let brown and reduce, about 10 minutes.
- Add the zucchini, garlic, tomato, saffron, paprika, cayenne pepper and let cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, another 10 minutes until vegetables are soft.
- Add the rice, vegetable broth and stir once. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and let simmer for 20 minutes. Don’t touch! Once your stir it all together, trust that it will come together. Stirring is for risotto, not paella.
- Top with chopped parsley and sliced lemons!