Arroz caldero – Mar Menor rice cooked in fish broth
The fishermen's dish of the Mar Menor in Murcia: a broth of dried ñora peppers, garlic and tomato in which the fish is poached and then the rice is cooked. The rice is eaten first and the fish after, both with aioli. Made with gilt-head bream, grey mullet, monkfish or whatever rockfish is available.
- 58 minTime
- 20 minHands-on
- 4Portions
- ≈ €4.45per portion
- 930kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 5 tbspOlive oil
- 4Ñora peppers, deseeded
- 6 clovesGarlic, peeled
- 2Tomatoes, grated
- ≈ 1.5 lWater
- to tasteSalt
- 2Gilt-head breams, cleaned, in pieces
- 400 gMonkfish, in steaks
- 350 gPaella rice
On the side
- 100 gAioli sauce
Method
- Heat the oil in a heavy pot and fry the ñoras over a low heat for a few seconds on each side – don't let them burn or they turn bitter. Lift them out. Fry the garlic cloves in the same oil until golden and lift them out too.
- Pound or blend the ñoras and garlic with a little water to a smooth paste.
- Fry the grated tomato in the oil in the pot for 5 minutes, until its liquid has cooked off.
- Stir in the paste, pour in the water, add salt and boil for 10 minutes.
- Add the fish and poach gently for 10 minutes, until cooked through. Carefully lift it out and keep it warm, covered.
- Strain the broth and return it to the pot. When it boils, add the rice and spread it out evenly.
- Cook the rice without stirring, 10 minutes over a high heat and 8 minutes over a medium-low heat, until done and still a little creamy, with some broth left.
- Serve the rice first, with aioli, then the fish, also with aioli.
The cost is estimated from average prices in Spain (MAPA – Panel de Consumo Alimentario en Hogares (Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación), 2026-07).
