Arroz a banda

  • Arroces

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Discover a rice dish that breathes the fishing traditions of our coastal municipalities. Bursting with the flavours of the sea, this is a dish that always delights.

Arroz a banda, a banda rice, is cooked up and down the Region of Valencia coastline. A quintessential part of Valencian gastronomy, this fish dish is inspired by the sea and fishing. Indeed, tradition has it that the dish used to be prepared on board fishing boats. The fish that wasn’t going to be sold was made into a flavoursome stock and later used to cook the rice, which was served “a banda”, in other words, on the side.

The present-day recipe for a banda rice tends to be simplified. It is now cooked in a paella with the fish stock, seafood and a tasty sofrito (fried onion, garlic and tomato). The fish markets in the Region provide the produce that makes the dish so irresistibly tasty.

A banda rice pairs beautifully with the aroma of saffron from Novelda and ñora pepper from Guardamar de Segura. Often served with these types of rice dishes, aioli (garlic mayonnaise) gives the dish an intense and potent flavour. We’d recommend making your way to any destination with a fishing tradition to try the dish and treat your palate to the taste of the Mediterranean. You’re going to love it.

See the recipe in pictures

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