Spain is known for having some great rice dishes, like the popular Paella. However, Spain has a ton of other rice dishes. Like this Creamy Spanish Rice with Chickpeas & Vegetables. This is a very unknown dish outside of Spain. In-fact, most Spaniards have never even heard of it, as it´s an old regional recipe from Murcia.
This dish is known in Spain as Arroz de Escribano, and let me tell you, it´s packed with flavors, easy to make and comes together in about 40 minutes. Serve it next to a tomato salad and a bottle of Spanish wine for the ultimate experince.
To make this recipe, I used Spanish round rice, which is very similar to arborio rice. You want to use a rice here that is starchy, which helps in developing the creamy texture. I also used jarred Spanish chickpeas, which is the same thing as the canned ones and vegetable broth as the liquid. However, you can also use water with a vegetable bouillon cube.
TIPS & TRICKS to Make this Recipe: Once all the ingredients are in the pan and it comes to a boil, you lower the fire to a low-medium heat and simmer for about 12 minutes. In my case, this was enough time for the rice to cook through. Because every pan heats differently, it might take you a minute more or a minute less, so keep an eye on the rice.
Key Ingredients & Cookware I used in this Recipe:
MY NONSTICK FRYING PAN
EXTRA VIRGIN SPANISH OLIVE OIL
SAFFRON THREADS I USED
SPANISH PAPRIKA
HOMEMADE VEGETABLE BROTH
SPANISH SEA SALT
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Watch the Video Below on How to Make this Creamy Spanish Rice with Chickpeas & Vegetables
Creamy Spanish Rice with Chickpeas & Vegetables | Arroz de Escribano Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 40 ml
- 1/2 onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 carrot
- 1/2 green bell pepper
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1 cup uncooked Spanish round rice 220 grams
- 2 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (canned or jarred) 400 grams
- 4 1/3 cups vegetable broth 1 liter
- 1 tsp sweet smoked Spanish paprika 2.30 grams
- 1/4 tsp saffron threads .17 grams
- handful finely chopped parsley
- dash sea salt
- dash black pepper
Instructions
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Roughly chop 1/2 onion, roughly chop 4 cloves garlic, thinly slice 1 carrot (peeled), roughly chop 1/2 green & 1/2 red bell pepper and drain a jar or can of cooked chickpeas (570 grams/400 grams drained/20 oz) into a colander and rinse under cold running water
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Heat a large deep fry pan with a medium-high heat and add in 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, after 2 minutes add the chopped onion, carrot and bell peppers, mix with the olive oil, after 5 to 6 minutes and all the vegetables are lightly sauteed, remove them from the pan and set aside
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Using the same pan with the same heat, add in 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and the chopped garlic, mix together, after 15 to 20 seconds add in 1 cup uncooked round rice and mix together, after 2 minutes and the rice is lightly toasted, add in 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika and season with sea salt & black pepper, mix together, then add in 4 cups vegetable broth and 1/4 tsp saffron threads, mix together and simmer on a medium-high heat
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Meanwhile, add the reserved cooked vegetables into a tall plastic cylinder (you can also use a food processor), along with a 1/4 cup of the rinsed chickpeas, 1/3 cup vegetable broth and a pinch of sea salt, using a handheld mixer, blend together until you form a creamy puree
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Once the broth comes to a boil in the pan, add in the remainder of the chickpeas and the vegetable puree, mix together and bring to a boil again, then lower the fire to a low-medium heat and simmer, making sure to mix the rice around every minute or so, after 12 minutes and a lot of the broth has been absorbed by the rice, but there is still plenty of broth left, place a lid on the pan and turn off the heat, let it rest for 3 to 4 minutes, then remove the lid and serve, sprinkled with finely chopped parsley, enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Get the Saffron Threads I used to make this recipe
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Vivian
24 . Jun . 2023Salió riquísimo! This rice turned out delicious. Very comforting and nutritious. My family loved it. Thank you!
Spain on a Fork
So happy to hear that! Much love 🙂
25 . Jun . 2023Peggy
Am looking forward to trying this recipe. We were just in Spain recently and had a rice similar to this as a tapa-i believe it had some pork in it , not chickpeas. We just loved the flavour and the consistency of the rice. Would I be thinking it is a recipe like this or is there another similar?? Thanks so much from Canada!!
14 . Apr . 2023Spain on a Fork
There are so many different rice dishes in Spain, but sounds pretty close to this one 🙂 Much love
15 . Apr . 2023Narr
28 . Mar . 2023This one’s a total game-changer and hands-down the most DELICIOUS vegetables with rice recipe there is! We make it every week, especially when we play basketball on Tuesdays and Fridays, for an instant dose of energy and mood-boosting goodness! We also tried experimenting with it – adding a bit of cumin instead of saffron for a more hummusy flavor, adding yellow bell peppers when they’re in season instead of green and red bell peppers (pureed vegetables look like mango pure then lol) – and it works every time! Thank you, Albert! 🙂
Spain on a Fork
So happy to hear that! Thanks for the comment 🙂 Much love
29 . Mar . 2023Frederick Fajardo
Tus recetas son estupendas. Siempre cuando preparo alguna receta que tienes en tu repertorio, sale maravillosa. ¡Muchísimas Gracias!
31 . May . 2022Spain on a Fork
Cuanto me alegro! Un saludo 🙂
01 . Jun . 2022Lia
16 . Mar . 2022We made this last night and added a drizzle of lemon on top and it was absolutely delicious. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Spain on a Fork
So happy to hear that! Much love 🙂
17 . Mar . 2022Richard
20 . Dec . 2021Love this recipe. Any recipe that calls for rice that you do, can it be done with brown rice?
Spain on a Fork
Absolutely, though the liquid to rice ratio will be different, so check the package instructions on the rice 🙂 much love
20 . Dec . 2021Sarah Erickson
07 . Dec . 2021Delicious and comforting! Love this! It turned out great. The broth absorbed more as it sat for about a half hour and rice/chickpeas became even softer.
Spain on a Fork
So glad you enjoyed the dish Sarah! Much love 🙂
07 . Dec . 2021Ian
09 . Nov . 2021Your recipes and YouTube are always an inspiration. Just trying to make Arroz de Escribano, I can see there are other similar dishes, also in Portugal which is where I’m cooking at the moment. I think I underestimated the litre of stock because I felt the rice didn’t have enough liquid to cook properly. By comparison with risotto this is a lot of stock. Just checking that this is correct? I will make it better next time!
Spain on a Fork
Yes 1 liter stock to the 1 cup rice (220 grams), assuming you are using round rice or arborio rice, much love 🙂
09 . Nov . 2021Andre Helps
I always look forward to your recipes and I have tried many. Before I do this one what alternative can I use to Spanish rice as I am in the UK. Long grain ?
08 . Nov . 2021Spain on a Fork
You can use long grain, though you will probably need to add in a bit less broth and it won´t be as creamy, as long grain does not contain as much starch, you can also use arborio rice, which is very similar to Spanish round rice 🙂 much love
09 . Nov . 2021Michelle McClintock
I appreciate that you’re including the Spanish names of your recipes. But is Arroz de Escribano called that because that was all some scribes had to eat?
05 . Nov . 2021Spain on a Fork
I wish I could tell you why the dish was named that, but it´s such an old recipe, that it was hard to get a lot of information on it 🙂 much love
05 . Nov . 2021Nancy Brown
05 . Nov . 2021125 grams of carbs? Not on my diet but sure sounds delicious and nutritious!