Wild Mushroom Vegetable Paella with Socarrat

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A fully vegan paella that hits like the seafood version: mushrooms are browned hard in two batches until they taste roasted, and the broth is built on dried porcini, tomato paste, saffron and sweet smoked paprika. Bomba rice goes in undisturbed so the bottom layer caramelizes into a proper crackling socarrat, finished with green beans, artichokes and piquillo peppers.

Ingredients

• 5 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp sweet smoked paprika (pimentón dulce)
• 1 large pinch saffron threads (about 1/4 tsp), crumbled
• 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste

• 1 lb mixed fresh mushrooms (cremini, oyster, shiitake), torn or thickly sliced
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes or grated fresh tomato
• 1/2 tsp hot smoked paprika or 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 6 oz green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths
• 1 14-oz can artichoke hearts, drained, patted dry and quartered
• 4 jarred piquillo peppers, cut into strips (or 1 roasted red pepper)
• 1/2 cup frozen peas

• 1 1/2 cups bomba or Calasparra rice (Arborio works in a pinch)
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• flaky sea salt, for serving

Instructions

1. Make the broth: combine the vegetable broth, dried porcini, tomato paste, sweet smoked paprika, saffron, soy sauce, bay leaf and 1 tsp salt in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce to low and steep for 15 minutes. Fish out the porcini, chop them finely and reserve; discard the bay leaf. Keep the broth at a bare simmer — it must be hot when it hits the rice.
2. Brown the mushrooms: heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a 13- to 14-inch paella pan or your widest heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the fresh mushrooms in a single layer and cook without touching them for 4 minutes, until the undersides are deeply browned. Toss and cook 3 to 4 minutes more, until browned all over and squeaky-dry. Season with a pinch of the 1/2 tsp salt, transfer to a plate, and repeat with the remaining mushrooms, adding a little more oil if the pan looks dry. This deep browning is where the paella's savory backbone comes from — do not rush it or crowd the pan.
3. Build the sofrito: lower the heat to medium and add the remaining 3 tbsp olive oil to the same pan. Add the onion and red bell pepper with a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often and scraping up the mushroom fond, for 8 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute until fragrant.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes, hot smoked paprika and the reserved chopped porcini. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until the tomato darkens to a brick color and the mixture is thick enough that a spoon leaves a clean trail. Stir in the green beans.
5. Add the rice and stir for 2 minutes so every grain is coated in the sofrito and lightly toasted. Spread the rice into an even layer.
6. Pour in 4 1/2 cups of the hot broth (reserve the rest) and add the artichoke hearts and half the browned mushrooms. Shake the pan to level everything, then bring to a hard boil over medium-high heat. From this moment on, do not stir the rice — stirring releases starch and prevents socarrat.
7. Boil vigorously for 10 minutes, rotating the pan a quarter turn every couple of minutes if you have hot spots on your burner. Taste the broth and add salt if it needs it; it should taste slightly saltier than you want the finished rice.
8. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer 8 to 10 minutes more, until the liquid has dropped to just below the surface of the rice. If any patches look dry while the grains are still firm, spoon over a few tablespoons of the reserved hot broth. Scatter the peas, piquillo strips and remaining mushrooms over the top and press them lightly into the rice.
9. Make the socarrat: raise the heat to medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Listen closely — you want a steady crackle and a toasty, nutty smell, not an acrid one. Slide a spoon down the side of the pan and check the bottom; when the rice has a golden-brown crust, kill the heat immediately.
10. Cover the pan loosely with foil or a clean kitchen towel and rest off the heat for 8 minutes. Uncover, scatter with parsley and flaky salt, and serve straight from the pan with lemon wedges, scraping up the crust from the bottom with each portion.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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