Paella Spices: Saffron, Sweet Paprika and Rosemary, and What Valencian Recipes Leave Out

Valencian paella takes fewer spices than you might think. In the two Spanish recipes compared here, the seasoning comes down to saffron, sweet paprika (pimentón), a sprig of rosemary and salt, with garlic if you like. Saffron is the one that defines the dish, and one recipe gives the paprika just a minute in the oil before the liquid goes in. Smoked paprika, chorizo and cayenne? Neither recipe asks for them.

At a glance

What paella is

Paella is saffron-flavored rice cooked with meats, seafood and vegetables, from the rice-growing areas of Spain’s Mediterranean coast and especially tied to Valencia. It’s named for the paellera, a flat, round two-handled pan, and traditionally you eat it straight from the pan. The general version sautés meat or seafood in olive oil with onions, garlic and herbs, then simmers rice, tomatoes, saffron and stock together.

The Valencian version is narrower. In 2021 Valencia’s regional government declared paella a bien de interés cultural, a protected cultural good, but the decree doesn’t set an official recipe.³ Two official tourism bodies publish the classic version:

Neither one lists onion, chorizo, black pepper or cayenne.

The core spices

Saffron: the one that defines the dish

Saffron is the dried stigmas of the saffron crocus, and it’s the most expensive spice in the world. It tastes bitter, with a strong aroma.

In the Visit València recipe, saffron goes in with the beans and salt after the water. In the Spain.info recipe, the saffron strands and rosemary go in together.¹² Neither gives a weight, so “a pinch” is as precise as the sources get. The color is water-soluble, so steeping crumbled threads in a little warm water or stock first spreads it evenly. See cooking with saffron and saffron uses. If your pan has gone medicinal, see too much saffron.

Buying saffron. You’ll hear that Persian saffron beats Spanish. None of the sources we checked backs a country ranking. The objective measure is grade. Under ISO 3632, saffron is tested by spectroscopy and sorted into four commercial grades: Extra Class, I, II and III.⁴ Fraud is a real problem: a 2022 adulterants bulletin listed corn stigmas dyed in beet juice among the fakes it found.⁵ Buy threads, not powder, from a seller who states the grade. See why saffron is so expensive and how to store saffron.

Sweet paprika: fried briefly

Both recipes use paprika: one tablespoon of sweet paprika for Visit València, 6 grams for Spain.info.² Visit València fries it over very low heat for one minute before the liquid goes in.¹ Paprika scorches easily, so keep that time short.

Spanish pimentón comes sweet, bittersweet or hot. The Pimentón de la Vera specification describes the sweet type as mild and completely sweet. La Vera pimentón is smoke-dried, which gives it the smoky flavor you know from smoked paprika.⁶ People often say paella calls for smoked paprika. Neither recipe here asks for it, so think of smoked paprika as a variation, not the Valencian standard. See paprika and paprika substitutes.

Rosemary: a sprig, late

Both recipes use a single sprig of rosemary, and Spain.info marks it optional.² Visit València adds it near the end and cooks it about five minutes.¹ Rosemary tastes pungent and slightly bitter. You can lift out a fresh sprig, while dried leaves stay in the rice, so fresh is the better pick here. See dried vs. fresh rosemary and too much rosemary.

Garlic: optional

Spain.info lists garlic as optional. Visit València says some cooks add a bit of garlic to the sauté, and admits opinions are divided.¹² The general description of paella includes garlic. See garlic.

What the recipes leave out

Black pepper and cayenne. Neither recipe uses them. A little heat is your call, not part of the Valencian dish. See paprika vs. cayenne.

Chorizo. It’s in neither recipe. And Spanish chorizo isn’t a cinnamon-and-clove sausage. The Chorizo de Cantimpalos specification names salt and pimentón as its basic ingredients, and Chorizo Riojano is seasoned with salt, pimentón and garlic.⁷⁸ Going by those specs, adding chorizo mostly means more paprika, garlic and pork fat in the pan.

Turmeric as a saffron stand-in. Turmeric is traditionally used to turn boiled white rice golden. It copies saffron’s color, not its flavor, so treat it as a budget stand-in, not an equivalent. See saffron vs. turmeric and saffron substitutes.

Related

• Saffron
• Smoked paprika
• Saffron vs. turmeric
• Safflower vs. saffron
• The master list of herbs and spices