Easy Vegetable Paella (vegan, gluten-free)
I’ve been wanting to give my old paella recipe a refresh here on the blog. It was one of my very first posts and honestly, the pictures were terrible (taken with my phone back then) so this was VERY needed. It’s such a good recipe, like one of my husband’s favorites, and it just needed more love. I updated the pictures and made a few tweaks to the original recipe. It’s been on repeat lately in our house. My husband loves paella and even my picky toddler enjoys eating this! The flavors in this paella are incredible and the squeeze of lemon at the end just makes it perfection. This paella is pretty customizable and you can switch out the veggies for whatever veggies you like. I tried to keep it pretty traditional. Normally, paella has saffron in it, but I know that can be pretty pricey and hard to find. In this recipe, I decided to use turmeric to get that rich yellow color and earthy flavor. However, if you have saffron, feel free to use it! I always thought paella was some complicated dish to make, but in reality, it isn’t that hard and is made in one pan! It’s a great dinner option and makes for even better leftovers! Traditionally, paella is made with seafood, but this is a vegan and healthier take on the famous Spanish rice. I hope you give this a try because it’s one of our favorite meals to make!
Easy Vegetable Paella (vegan, gluten-free)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 1 can of quartered artichoke hearts, drained
- 3/4 cup green beans, diced
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 1¼ cups arborio rice
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika (or regular)
- 1/2 - 1 tsp sea salt (to taste)
- black pepper to taste
- one lemon, quartered
Instructions
- Heat the oil on medium high heat in a big pan or large cast iron pan. When it’s hot, add the garlic, onion, red peppers. Cook until golden brown.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and green beans and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add the frozen peas, artichoke hearts, turmeric, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 minutes more.
- Add the rice and cook until it begins to be translucent. Pour in the vegetable broth.
- Lightly stir the paella until all the ingredients are mixed and cook over medium or medium high heat for 20 minutes uncovered or until the rice is cooked all the way through. Don’t stir the paella while it is cooking! You want it to form a crust on the bottom. Add more vegetable broth if the rice is hard and dry.
- Let it sit for at least 5 or 10 minutes. Squeeze lemon slices over the paella or serve with a lemon slice. Enjoy!
