5 from 13 votes

Vegetable Paella

Jump to Recipe
Try this one-pot vegetable paella! It's low in price, high in flavour and packed full of veggies. Ideal for meal prep and sharing with the family/friends.
Prep time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
£1.42
Makes: 4
mains
Spanish
Freezable

Table of Contents

  1. Why this recipe works
  2. Ingredients
  3. How to make this recipe
5 from 13 votes

Vegetable Paella

Jump to Recipe
Try this one-pot vegetable paella! It's low in price, high in flavour and packed full of veggies. Ideal for meal prep and sharing with the family/friends.
Prep time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
£1.42
Makes: 4
mains
Spanish
Freezable

Why this recipe works

This recipe is the answer to a budget paella. We’re using cheap and delicious, vibrant veggies to replace the meat/fish traditionally used in a spanish paella. And swapping the use of saffron (super expensive!) with a tiny dash of turmeric, to provide the gorgeous bright yellow colour that’s associated with paella. Don’t worry, it doesn’t taste like turmeric. It all comes together in one pot, so we can spend less time cleaning and more time admiring our delicious vegetable paella.

Vegetable paella with peppers, peas and beans and topped with lemon wedges and fresh parsley and a portion already served out of pan.

Ingredients

Ingredients to make vegetable paella laid out on a pale blue background and labelled.

How to make this recipe

Start by frying a finely chopped onion in large/deep non-stick frying pan with a tbsp of olive oil. Fry until translucent for around 5 to 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. If you have a paella pan that will make the dish look more authentic, but my paella pan doesn’t work on my induction hob, so I used a non stick large frying pan which worked fine!

Onions sautéing in frying pan on stove with spatula.

Then add the minced garlic, paprika and turmeric to the onions and continue to fry until the spices bloom for a couple of minutes.

Onions sautéing in pan with spices added and a spatula.

Now add half a tin of chopped tomatoes & sliced red peppers and bring to simmer, before adding the stock and green beans.

Tomatoes, peppers, stock and green beans in frying pan on stove.

Now add the rice and simmer for 30 minutes. 

Rice, chopped tomatoes, peppers, stock and beans in pan on stove.

Keep adding an extra splash of water, if the stock has absorbed and the rice is still cooking. Add the peas in the last 5 minutes.

Rice cooked with red peppers, beans, peas in pan on stove.

Taste the rice and when the paella is ready, squeeze the juice of half a lemon into the pan. Before you serve, decorate the paella with lemon wedges around the edge and sprinkle some fresh parsley over the top. Enjoy!

Paella in pan garnished with lemon wedges and parsley over top on stove.

Vegetable Paella

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5 from 13 votes
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
£1.42
mains
Spanish
Freezable
Servings: 4
Try this one-pot vegetable paella! It's low in price, high in flavour and packed full of veggies. Ideal for meal prep and sharing with the family/friends.

Ingredients

  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced (£0.09)
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced (£0.69/3)=(£0.23)
  • 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced (£0.48x2)=(£0.98)
  • ½ tin chopped tomatoes (£0.32)
  • 2 handfuls of frozen peas (£0.66/10)=(£0.07)
  • 350 g paella rice (£1.40)
  • 180 g trimmed green beans, sliced diagonally (£0.89)
  • Fresh parsley, torn (£0.50)
  • 2 lemons, ½ + wedges to garnish (£0.59)
  • 60 g wild rocket (£0.60)

Cupboard Essentials

  • 1 - 1.2 litre veggie stock
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • Salt & Pepper

Method

  • Add your finely chopped onion into a large/deep non-stick frying pan (or paella pan if you have one) along with a splash of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and fry until translucent on a medium heat, for approx 6 minutes.
  • Next, add the minced garlic, paprika and turmeric into the pan to fry for a further minute. Then add half the tin of chopped tomatoes & red peppers into the pan. Stir to combine and increase the heat to cook off the liquid.
  • Pop the stock, rice and green beans into the pan, simmering for around 20 minutes. For the remaining 5 minutes of cook time, add the peas and an extra splash of water if it needs it.
  • When the stock has absorbed and the paella is cooked and ready to eat, add the juice of half a lemon into the pan. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley. Serve with rocket side salad.

Nutrition

Servings: 4 servings
Fat: 5g
Calories: 438kcal
Carbohydrates: 86g
Protein: 12g
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