Vegan Paella, Filipino Style

When the rice company, Eighth Wonder, sent me some of their rice to review,  I wasn’t sure what to do with them aside from the plain steamed version. I asked around on Twitter and got some helpful suggestions like rice pudding, tsampurado, sushi, etc. Someone new to Twitter, @KA_Hawk replied “Paella” (his/her very first tweet!).

I looked up several different Paella recipes online, afraid that the process would be too complicated. After all, I always find the flavors of the dish complex and flavorful. I braced myself for what would be laborious work in the kitchen, but much to my surprise the vegan version was amazingly simple.

By the way, Filipino style Paella is almost the same as the Spanish original except for some of the spices used. The Filipino version uses achuete or anatto powder as the food coloring instead of saffron threads. Although it still uses saffron, the flavor infusion comes from the bay leaves. Some Filipino versions also use tomato sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled, crushed, and minced
• 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 teaspoon  annatto powder dissolved and mixed in 3 tablespoons water
• 1 1/2 cup uncooked rice
• 2 cups warm water
• 1 cup of vegetable broth
• 1 can straw mushrooms
• 1/2 cup green peas, frozen and thawed
• 3 pieces bay leaves
• a pinch of saffron threads
• salt and pepper to taste (preferably sea salt and freshly ground pepper)
• lemon wedges, for garnish
• olives, for garnish
• artichokes hearts for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a skillet or pan, saute garlic with oil over medium heat.
2. Add onions and tomatoes until fragrant and tender.
3. Add red bell pepper and saute for another 5 minutes.
4. Pour in the rice grains, mix well making sure the grains are coated.
5. Add water and vegetable broth, mixing well so the rice will have equal amounts of flavor. Simmer and occasionally mix for 5 minutes.
6. Top the rice with bay leaves and cover the pan. Let the rice cook for 15 minutes (no stirring).
7. Check the rice, if the top portion is still raw, add a little bit of water. Do this bit by bit and gradually until all liquid is absorbed and the rice is fully cooked.
8. Once the rice is cooked, mix in peas, saffron threads, and annatto mixture.
9. Add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
10. Add artichokes, olives, and lemons on top as garnish.
11. Serve hot.

 

The verdict on the Kalinga Unoy rice: The difference between Kalinga Unoy compared to white Jasmine rice and Spanish rice is that Kalinga Unoy is definitely not sweet. In fact, I think the regular brown rice is still sweeter (but also more robust).

With that said, the mild earthy flavor of Kalinga Unoy is perfect for a dish like Paella because it incorporates well with the flavors of the vegetables and spices. It doesn’t overpower any of the elements.

Kalinga Unoy also has the perfect texture because it made my Paella creamy yet al-dente.

To learn more about Eighth Wonder and its products, feel free to visit their site.

Meanwhile, I still have some samples to review like a red rice called Ulikan Red and another kind sweet sticky rice. Please feel free to suggest a recipe either on this blog or on Twitter. I’ll give proper credit of course. Thanks in advance and enjoy making a vegan Filipino Paella!