What is paella?

Hailing from Valencia, paella is Spain's most famous dish. These large rice dishes are traditionally cooked outside for special occasions, and were once only cooked by men. While there are hundreds of paella recipes around, the two traditional ones are the valenciana and the marinera. The valenciana is made from rice, chicken, rabbit, tomatoes, capsicums, beans, olive oil, saffron, and occasionally artichokes and peas. The marinera, the most well known paella, contains rice, fish, shellfish, garlic, olive oil, tomatoes and saffron.

Do I need saffron?

The world's most expensive spice gives the paella its signature golden hue and slight smoky flavour. It is an integral part of the dish, and no recipe should be without it. The good news is that while saffron can be expensive, you need very little to make this dish shine.

What about the pan?

If you've ever seen a paella made, you'd be familiar with the signature shallow dish it's cooked in. These inexpensive pans don't just look good, but are also functional. Their shallow sides mean you can sauté ingredients before adding the rice, the dimples in the base help everything cook evenly and the large handles help with lifting it onto the table. If you don't have a special pan, simply use a large heavy-based frying pan for similar results.

Ready to try it yourself?

Here are some great paella recipes to get you started.

For more ideas, visit our Rice recipe collection.