Chef Isabel
Arròs al Forn de Vigilia
Arròs al forn de vigilia is Valencia's meatless baked rice for Cuaresma: chickpeas, potato, tomato, and a whole garlic head set in a clay cazuela and baked dry, with no stirring.
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Arroz al Horno Valenciano
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Arroz al horno is Valencian oven rice, born from cocido broth and leftovers, baked dry in a clay cazuela until the grains stand separate and the top catches.
Main Dishes
Spanish
Comfort Food
One Pot
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
55 min cook•1 hr 20 min total
Yield4 to 6 servings
Arroz al horno is Valencian, and it is not paella wearing a different pan. This is oven-baked rice, arròs al forn, made in a cazuela de barro with pork ribs, morcilla, chickpeas, potato, tomato, and a whole head of garlic in the middle like it owns the place. It comes out dry, not soupy, with separate grains and a browned top that tells you the oven did its work.
The method that decides it is the broth-to-rice ratio. Once the hot broth goes in, the rice has one chance to drink exactly what it needs. Too much and you get soft, tired rice. Too little and the centre stays hard. For short-grain Valencian rice, use twice the volume of hot broth to rice, then bake hard and leave it alone. No stirring. Not every arroz is a paella, and this one certainly isn't.
If you have leftover cocido broth, use it. That is the old sense of the dish. If you don't, a good pork and chicken stock will do, with a little saffron and pimentón to bring it toward Valencia. No hace falta haber pisado España. You do need short-grain rice, real morcilla if you can find it, and a clay or heavy oven dish that holds heat well.
The cazuela should go to the table with the garlic head still at the centre, the potato rounds browned at the edges, the tomato softened into the rice, and the morcilla dark and rich. Let it rest ten minutes before you serve it. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.
Arroz al horno belongs to the Valencian kitchen, where rice is treated dish by dish rather than all folded into paella. It grew from the puchero or cocido, using its broth, chickpeas, and meats, then baking them with rice in a cazuela de barro. In many towns it was known as arròs passejat, the walked rice, because the filled cazuela was carried to the village bread oven and brought home browned and ready for the table.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
short-grain Spanish rice, preferably bomba, senia, or bahía
Quantity
400g
hot cocido broth or pork and chicken stock
Quantity
800ml
pork ribs
Quantity
450g
cut into small pieces
panceta or fresh pork belly
Quantity
150g
cut into thick strips
morcillas de cebolla
Quantity
2, about 180g total
cooked chickpeas
Quantity
250g
drained
potato
Quantity
1 medium, about 220g
peeled and sliced into 1cm rounds
ripe tomato
Quantity
1 large
half grated and half sliced
whole head of garlic
Quantity
1
loose outer skin removed
olive oil
Quantity
3 tablespoons
sweet pimentón
Quantity
1 teaspoon
saffron threads
Quantity
12 threads
fine salt
Quantity
1 teaspoon, plus more to taste
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
to taste
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| short-grain Spanish rice, preferably bomba, senia, or bahía | 400g |
| hot cocido broth or pork and chicken stock | 800ml |
| pork ribscut into small pieces | 450g |
| panceta or fresh pork bellycut into thick strips | 150g |
| morcillas de cebolla | 2, about 180g total |
| cooked chickpeasdrained | 250g |
| potatopeeled and sliced into 1cm rounds | 1 medium, about 220g |
| ripe tomatohalf grated and half sliced | 1 large |
| whole head of garlicloose outer skin removed | 1 |
| olive oil | 3 tablespoons |
| sweet pimentón | 1 teaspoon |
| saffron threads | 12 threads |
| fine salt | 1 teaspoon, plus more to taste |
| freshly ground black pepper | to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •32 to 34cm cazuela de barro or wide heavy ovenproof dish
- •Small saucepan for hot broth
- •Box grater for tomato
- •Kitchen scale
Instructions
- 1
Heat the oven
Heat the oven to 220C. Put the broth in a saucepan with the saffron and keep it hot. Taste it now; it should be well seasoned but not harsh, because the rice will take all its salt from the liquid.
- 2
Brown the pork
Set a 32 to 34cm cazuela de barro or heavy ovenproof pan over medium heat with the olive oil. Salt the ribs and panceta lightly, then brown them until the edges take good colour, about 8 to 10 minutes. You are building the taste of the rice here, so don't hurry the browning into pale meat.
- 3
Colour the potatoes
Lift the pork to a plate. Add the potato rounds to the same oil and cook them until lightly golden on both sides, about 5 minutes. They don't need to cook through yet. Lift them out and keep them for the top.
- 4
Toast the rice
Lower the heat. Add the grated half tomato to the oil and cook it down for 3 to 4 minutes, until it darkens and the water has gone. Stir in the pimentón for just a few seconds, then add the rice and move it through the oil until the grains look glossy. This little toast helps the rice stay separate in the oven.
- 5
Fill the cazuela
Return the pork to the cazuela and stir in the chickpeas. Spread everything into an even layer. Set the whole head of garlic in the centre, nestle in the morcillas, and arrange the potato rounds and tomato slices on top. Pésalo, no lo adivines: 400g rice wants 800ml hot broth for this dry baked finish.
- 6
Add broth
Pour the hot broth evenly over the rice. It should bubble as it hits the cazuela. Taste one last drop of the liquid if you can do it safely, and correct the salt now, because once it goes into the oven you leave it alone.
- 7
Bake dry
Transfer the cazuela to the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice has absorbed the broth, the top is browned in places, and the edges look dry and glossy with pimentón-stained oil. Do not stir. Stirring works the starch loose and gives you the wrong texture for arroz al horno.
If the top browns before the rice is tender, lower the oven to 200C for the last few minutes. If the rice is tender but looks wet, give it 3 to 5 more minutes. - 8
Rest and serve
Take the cazuela from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes. The rice finishes settling in that rest and loosens from the clay. Serve from the dish, with a little pork, chickpeas, morcilla, potato, tomato, and a spoonful of soft garlic for each person.
Chef Tips
- •Use short-grain Spanish rice if you can. Bomba is forgiving because it absorbs well and stays separate; senia or bahía are more Valencian in character but ask you to be exact with the liquid. Arborio is the emergency substitute, not the goal, and it will eat softer.
- •Cocido broth is the old backbone of the dish. If you don't have it, use a clear pork and chicken stock and season it with saffron, pimentón, and enough salt before it touches the rice. Weak broth gives weak rice, no mystery there.
- •Morcilla de cebolla is the Valencian choice, soft and sweet with onion. If you can only find morcilla de Burgos with rice inside, use it, but know it makes the dish heavier and the slices can break more easily.
- •Canned chickpeas are fine here. Rinse them and add them with the rice. This is one shortcut that costs the dish very little; skipping the hot measured broth costs it plenty.
- •Use a wide cazuela, not a deep casserole. The rice should sit in a shallow layer so the oven can dry the top while the middle cooks through. Deep rice turns heavy before it browns.
Advance Preparation
- •The broth can be made 2 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Reheat it fully before adding it to the rice.
- •The pork can be browned a few hours ahead and held covered in the refrigerator, but bring it back toward room temperature before assembling the cazuela.
- •Arroz al horno is best eaten after its 10 minute rest, while the top is still dry and the grains are separate. Leftovers keep 2 days and reheat best covered in a moderate oven with a spoonful of water at the edge.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 430g)
Calories
730 calories
Total Fat
33 g
Saturated Fat
11 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
19 g
Cholesterol
105 mg
Sodium
1060 mg
Total Carbohydrates
80 g
Dietary Fiber
9 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
28 g
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