Chickpea & Shishito Paella

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Chickpea & Shishito Paella

Prep Time1

Cook Time30

Total Time1 30

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Spanish, Vegan

Keyword: Dry Beans

Servings: servings

Calories: 476kcal

Equipment

Pressure cooker
Immersion blender
Large oven-proof skillet

Ingredients

½ lb dry chickpeas
3 cups vegetable broth
1 pinch saffron threads crushed
¼ cup olive oil
12 small shishito peppers stemmed but left whole
1 large yellow onion chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 large red bell pepper chopped
½ lb green beans cut into 1” pieces
1 tsp Spanish smoked paprika pimenton
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp kosher salt
½ cup passata or 2 small tomatoes passed through the food mill
2 tbsp chopped cilantro leaves with tender stems
1½ cup Spanish rice Calasparra is best, can be Arborio
2 cups spinach chopped

Vegan aioli (optional)

1 clove garlic
¼ cup aquafaba
2 tbsp cooked chickpeas
¾ tsp Dijon mustard
½ tsp kosher salt
¾ cup grapeseed or neutral oil
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Cook beans (1-2 days before, if making the vegan aioli)

Soak the beans in water and 1% salt for at least 6 hours. Drain and put in the pressure cooker. Add water to about ½" above the chickpeas – you don’t want too much water for this given the vegan aioli step. Don’t add more salt or spices, to keep the flavor fairly neutral.
Bring to pressure for 14 minutes. Allow pressure to release naturally. Remove the lid and remove the inner pot. Allow to cool.
Once cool, store chickpeas and their cooking liquid together in the fridge for 1-2 days.

Make paella

Prepare ingredients first per the ingredient list. Onion, garlic and red bell pepper can go together. Passata and chopped cilantro can go together in a glass. Paprika, cumin and salt can also be combined.
Heat the 3 cups broth in a saucepan until boiling. Then turn heat to low and cover. If chickpeas are in the fridge, you can add them to the broth here, to warm them up. (Otherwise leave them to the side for now.)
Heat a very large (at least 12”), straight-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ¼ cup olive oil and heat to shimmering. Place the shishitos in the pan with tongs and sear each side for 1-2 minutes. Transfer them back to their bowl.
Around now, preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper and cook to the pan, stirring frequently, until the vegetables have softened, 6-8 minutes. Add the paprika, cumin and salt and stir well for 30 seconds. Then add the green beans and cook for 2-3 minutes until they’ve brightened.
Stir in the tomato sauce and cilantro and let it cook a bit, maybe 30 seconds. Then add the rice and stir well, making sure it all is combined thoroughly. Stir in the broth, drained chickpeas, and spinach. Sprinkle in the crushed saffron. Taste and add more salt if needed.
Cook on medium, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until the rice has begun to absorb the liquid. The rice should still be covered by liquid, but it should have started to dry out.
Then nestle the shishitos on the rice and transfer the pan the oven. Bake, uncovered, for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove and cover with a lid or aluminum foil and let it sit for 10 minutes, until the rice is fully cooked.
While it cooks, make the aioli. Cut the garlic and remove green shoots, if any, to prevent some of the bitter taste of uncooked garlic. In a small cup that can fit the immersion blender, puree the garlic, aquafaba, chickpeas, mustard and salt until smooth. Drizzle in the oil, starting slowly until it begins to thicken. Then you can pour the rest in. You may need to blend for several minutes before it starts to thicken. Once as thick as you think it’ll get, or as thick as it needs to be, add the lemon juice and any extra salt, to taste. Store in a container in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

Notes

This recipe makes 8 servings.

Nutrition