What is the best type of rice to cook a paella?

Paella is one of the standards of Spanish gastronomy, a dish that can be tasted in any corner of Spain, but that acquires its maximum expression and tradition in the province of Valencia. There are many fans who try to make this dish at home and do not get the same result as if you ate at a restaurant in Albufera. There are many key factors in the execution of a good paella, the choice of rice, is undoubtedly one of them. If you are looking for the perfect rice in our online store you will find it.

What is the best type of rice to cook a paella?

Paella round rice

Among all varieties of rices, round rice will be used for paella. However, there are different types of round rice, depending on which one we use our paella will be or one more rice or a whole success. The main varieties used are rice pump and Senia rice.

Bomba: a short grain (5.2 mm) and rounded, which tends to lengthen during cooking. It is characteristic of the Mediterranean basin, where most of its production is concentrated, although we can find plantations in places as diverse as Seville, Badajoz, Murcia and Albacete among others. This is a grain that absorbs the liquid very well, to the point of multiplying its volume by two.

Senia: They are grains that absorb the flavor extraordinarily well, they have a very creamy texture and once cooked they are very juicy.

From my experience, I think the best option is a mixture of the two rices. That’s right, you do not have to give up the qualities of these rices. The Bomba  that is not passed, which takes well the liquid and maintains a good texture, while, Senia is a round rice that takes the taste very well, both qualities are essential if we want our paella to be a success.

Another factor that we have to take into account is water. Not all waters are equal, the hardness of the water will determine its ease to be absorbed by the rices. The proportion of twice as much water as rices is not always the most adequate, we have to know well the water we are going to use, to ensure that the rices does not go through or stay hard.

In the online market Gastronomic Spain, you can find these two varieties of rice, the senia and the Bomba, indispensable to obtain an exquisite paella.

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