Arroz a banda recipe: Alicante's fish-stock rice with alioli

This arroz a banda recipe comes from the fishing quarters of Alicante, where rice is cooked in a strong rockfish stock and the fish is eaten separately, «a banda». The key is the stock, and never stirring once it is in.

Alicante is spending the autumn on this dish: the IV Jornadas Alicante Ciudad del Arroz run from 15 October to 15 November 2026, with 52 restaurants serving rice menus from €25. Our version follows the method published by Turismo Comunitat Valenciana, with ñora, cuttlefish and a short sofrito, scaled for four. For more of the region's rice, see our guide to what to eat in Valencia.

Ingredients

In arroz a banda the rice is the main course; the fish only lends it flavour.

• 1.4 litres rockfish stock, kept hot
• 400 g round rice (bomba, senia or marisma)
• 300 g cuttlefish, in 1 cm dice
• 150 g peeled prawns
• 2 dried ñora peppers
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 ripe tomato (150 g), grated
• 1 teaspoon sweet pimentón de la Vera
• 0.3 g saffron, toasted and crushed
• 70 ml extra virgin olive oil
• Salt
• For the alioli: 2 garlic cloves, 150 ml olive oil, a pinch of salt

Method

1. Soak the ñoras in hot water for 15 minutes, discard the seeds and scrape out the pulp, which gives the rice its colour.
2. Heat the oil in a 40 cm paella pan and brown the cuttlefish for 5 minutes; its juices on the pan are the base of the dish.
3. Add the garlic and ñora pulp for 30 seconds, then the pimentón and at once the tomato, which stops the paprika burning and turning bitter.
4. Cook the sofrito for 8 minutes, until it darkens and the oil separates. A dry sofrito keeps the grains loose.
5. Stir in the rice for 1 to 2 minutes so every grain is coated in oil.
6. Pour in the hot stock with the saffron, check the salt and spread the rice evenly. Do not stir again: stirring releases starch and makes the rice creamy.
7. Boil hard for 8 minutes, scatter the prawns, then cook on medium for 8 to 9 minutes, until the liquid has gone and the grain still has a slight bite.
8. Raise the heat for the last 1 to 2 minutes until you hear a faint crackle, the socarrat forming on the base. Rest for 5 minutes under a cloth.
9. For the alioli, pound the garlic with the salt in a mortar and add the oil drop by drop until it thickens.

Getting the arroz a banda recipe right: the stock

On the Alicante coast the stock is made with morralla, small bony rockfish that sell for little, simmered for 40 minutes with onion, tomato and a ñora, then strained. Bought stock should be free of colouring and slightly reduced. Drink a chilled white from the Alicante DO.

Arroz a banda: frequently asked questions

Can I make it ahead? The stock, ñora pulp and alioli, yes, a day before. The rice must be cooked just before eating: it keeps absorbing liquid and goes soft within half an hour.

Which rice is best for arroz a banda? A round Spanish variety. Bomba forgives extra stock; senia and marisma take flavour faster but overcook more easily.

How is arroz a banda different from paella? Paella valenciana carries chicken, rabbit and green beans. Arroz a banda is cooked only in fish stock and arrives almost bare, the fish served apart.