Vegan Paella (with Marinated Peppers and Artichokes)

This easy vegan paella is packed with the rich flavours of saffron, smoked paprika and marinated vegetables. Ready in 35 minutes!

Paella is no stranger to most of you, if not all. Are you a fan? My family certainly is; we probably haven’t met a paella we didn’t fall in love with!

What is Paella?

The word paella is a Catalan word that comes from the Old French word paelle for pan, and which in turn comes from the Latin word patella, also meaning pan.

Valencians use the word paella for all pans, including the specialized shallow pan used for cooking paellas. However, in most other parts of Spain and throughout Latin America, the term paellera is more commonly used for this pan, though both terms are correct, as stated by the Royal Spanish Academy, the body responsible for regulating the Spanish language in Spain.[13][14] Paelleras are traditionally round, shallow and made of polished steel with two handles.

Wikipedia

So now you know! Click on the Wiki link above to read more; it really is fascinating.

Vegan Paella Recipe

Is super easy. Just lose the meat, and use vegetable stock, and you are all set. Let’s look at some of the ingredients and how to cook paella at home.

Paella Rice

Be sure to use a good quality paella rice like Bomba, the most easily available, or as I’m using here, Calasparra.

Paella rice absorbs more liquid than your usual grain of rice, and once cooked, retains its integrity, while still being creamy. So be sure to use paella rice meant for making Spanish rice dishes. It’ll absorb all those flavours you throw at it.

Paella Stock

A good stock is crucial. Homemade is great, but that’s not always viable, so the alternative is a good shop bought one, which these days, is very, very easy to find.

The stock is yet another layer of flavour to your paella, so is very, very important. Find one with no added flavours, colours and whatever. Just good old vegetables and aromatics.

Fancy an easy homemade vegetable stock recipe? Just click here.

Vegan Paella Vegetables

What vegetables you use in your vegan paella, is, to some extent a matter of taste. Let’s take a look at the vegetables we are using in the vegan paella.

As mentioned in the title, we are using marinated vegetables in our paella, with the exception of the courgette (zucchini). I am a huge fan of marinated vegetables, preferably roasted or grilled, because they have a deeper flavour than their fresh counterparts, with a hint of smoke. You’ll find them sold in jars in the Italian antipasto aisle or at many delis.

This is what I’m using, you can add more variety if you like:

Capsicum (bell peppers)

If you can get your hands on piquillo peppers in a jar, that would be perfect. Piquillo peppers are from the around the town of Lodosa is Spain, and have Designated Origin status. They are sweet and a touch tangy and are so incredibly delicious.

Failing that, any good quality, grilled or roasted peppers is a jar will make a good enough substitute, like these ones. You can also use a jar of mixed peppers if you like.

Marinated Artichokes

I am using homemade ones (as above), because I happen to have some. However, you will also find these easily at most supermarkets and delis. If you fancy your hand at making them form scratch, just click here.

Besides the peppers and artichokes, I’ve only used some fresh courgettes. I have frozen grilled ones at home, but didn’t bother to use them this time. But they are always good too.

You can add any other vegetables you fancy. Peas, added right at the end are always a nice splash of colour and flavour. Olives are also great.

Basically, this is a very user-friendly vegan paella recipe!

The Paella Pan

We all know that paella is cooked in a paella (pan), see Wiki link above. The idea behind the shape of the pan and its width is that as much rice hits the bottom of the pan as possible to get maximum, almost caramelised flavour and to ensure that the rice cooks in an even thin layer.

If you cannot get a paella pan, go for a large frying pan that’s about 7.5cm (3″) deep. Just remember, the bigger the pan, the larger your flame source has to be too!

Right then, that’s all there is to it. easy, right?

Shall we get our aprons on?

More Vegan Recipes on LinsFood

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♥ If you like the recipe, don’t forget to leave me a comment and that all important, 5-star rating! 😉 Gracias! ♥ 

And if you make the recipe, share it on any platform and tag me @azlinbloor.

Lin xx

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