Paella-Vegetarian

By stancec44

The cast iron skillet comes in handy for these all-in-one type dishes — everything is assembled, cooked, and served from the same dish! Recipe author used bright red and yellow peppers, green beans, artichoke hearts, peas, and garbanzo beans to make the dish vibrant and flavorful. She also used brown rice instead of the traditional white rice to add some extra nutrition to this weeknight meal; parboiling the rice helps speed up the cooking.

Ingredients

• 1 cup short-grain brown rice (See Recipe Note)
• Hefty pinch saffron (about 8 strands)
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 3/4 cup crushed tomatoes, fresh or canned
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 tablespoon hot paprika
• 1 cup green beans, trimmed and halved
• 3 artichoke hearts, sliced (fresh, frozen, or canned)
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1/4 cup peas, fresh or frozen
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley, for garnish (optional)
• Salt and pepper
• Recipe Notes
• Paella with Traditional White Rice: If you'd prefer, use a traditional short-grain white rice for this dish, like Bomba or Valencia. If using white rice, there's no need to par-boil and you only need 3 cups of broth.

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from thekitchn.com

Preparation

Step 1

Bring 3 cups of water and a hefty pinch of salt to a boil, add the rice, and cook for about about 20 minutes, or until the rice begins to soften. Drain and set aside. (Par-boiling the brown rice speeds up the overall cooking time.)

Combine saffron threads and 3 tablespoons of warm water in a small bowl and set aside. Bring the broth to a simmer, then reduce the heat and keep at a low simmer until needed.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet, and sauté the onions until soft and fragrant. Add the garlic slices and peppers. Cook until soft, about 7 minutes. Mix in the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, hot paprika, saffron threads (along with the water), and season generously with salt and freshly cracked pepper. Let it cook for a few minutes.

Make sure to have your vegetable broth simmering nearby. Fold in the green beans, artichoke slices, and chickpeas. Then stir in the par-boiled, drained rice. Ladle the simmering broth over the rice. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the liquid has evaporated. A few minutes before the rice is fully cooked, scatter the peas over top. Sprinkle with parsley just before serving.