Spanish Vegetable Paella

Paella is a traditional Spanish dish that brings rice, vegetables, and mouthwatering flavors to the table. It’s a family-style simple meal that’s served right from the pot! When our daughter traveled to Spain and came home raving about paella, I decided to create a whole food plant-base, oil-free version that we all could enjoy. The flavors begin with beautiful saffron rice and an assortment of spices that are sure to warm your belly.

I cheated on so many levels with this paella because I wanted to use brown rice, no oil, and no seafood. Cooking brown rice all in one pot with the vegetables would have over cooked the vibrant vegetables, so I cooked the saffron rice in a separate pot. I even cheated more when I cooked the rice in the Instant Pot®, which makes perfect rice every time. Now when I build paella, I always start with a cooked brown saffron rice straight from my Instant Pot.

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Prep time 30 minutes

Cook time Varies from 30-60 minutes

Yield 6 servings

Ingredients

Saffron Brown Rice

1 ½ cups short grain brown rice
3 cups low sodium vegetable broth (2 cups if you are using an Instant Pot or pressure cooker)
Pinch of saffron threads (or 1 teaspoon turmeric)

Paella Vegetables

1 red onion, medium diced
5 cloves garlic cloves, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
2 carrots shredded
8-10 ounces shitake mushrooms, sliced (you can also use button mushrooms)
1 cup green beans, 2 inches slices
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary (or ½ teaspoon dried rosemary)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
1 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
½ teaspoon black pepper
1-15 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
¼ cup dry red wine
1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon low sodium tamari sauce

Garnish:

1 cup frozen peas, thawed.
½ cup kalamata olives (or any olive you love)
1-15 ounce can artichokes, drained and rinsed
1 lemon cut into wedges
¼ cup chopped parsley (optional)

Kitchen Tools

One large 12-14 inch skillet
One medium sized pot
One Instant Pot® (optional)
Wooden spoons and spatulas
Large spoons and forks
Measuring cups and spoons
Chef knife
Cutting board

‍ Instructions

In a medium saucepan, add 3 cups vegetable broth, 1 ½ cups short grain brown rice, and a pinch of saffron threads (or turmeric) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and allow the rice to simmer for 45 minutes or until tender. *Quick version: Use your Instant Pot and cook on high pressure (using only 2 cups vegetable broth) for 20 minutes with a quick release.
In a large 12-14-inch skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the onions using water or vegetable broth to deglaze the pan. Add the garlic, peppers, carrots, mushrooms, green beans, red pepper flakes, smoked paprika, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and continue to cook until the vegetables are tender.
Add the tomatoes, red wine, vegan Worcestershire sauce, and tamari sauce. Continue cooking over medium heat for 10-12 minutes so the flavors begin to develop.
Add the cooked brown rice to the skillet and continue cooking on low heat for another 10 minutes.
Top the paella with thawed peas, and plenty of chopped kalamata olives and artichokes. Place the top on the pan and allow the mixture to rest and warm for another 10 minutes. Serve warm and top with lemon slices and parsley.

Tips & Tricks

For a true one pot quick version, try using parboiled rice so you can cook it directly in the pot with the Paella sauce. I make a quick Paella using 1 ½ cups parboiled rice with 3 cups of vegetable broth. There is no need to cook the rice in a separate pot. You can also experiment with various white rice varieties if brown rice isn’t your thing. Traditional Spanish Paellas are made with short grain white rice. Don’t forget to add the saffron or turmeric to the Paella pot!