Fiona Govan
THE traditional Valencian paella is under threat from global warming, warn researchers in Spain, who fear one of the key ingredients is nearing extinction as temperatures rise.
The essential elements of a paella are rice, water,olive oil, saffron, tomato, flat green beans, chicken, rabbit and a variety of lima bean known as garrafón in Spanish.
It is the garrafon that researchers believe is at threat from global warming who fear that it may soon be too warm to grow the bean variety in that part of Spain.
Lead researcher on the project, Mario X. Ruiz, explained: “Our research identifies the most fragile varieties (of bean) in the face of the effects of climate change, so conserving them is a priority.”
It comes after researchers at the University of Valencia surveyed local chefs in the region to determine the unwritten and hugely divisive rules of paella.
Some 400 chefs were surveyed from over 250 different Valencian villages in the study by the Universidad Catolica de Valencia
The findings established the 10 essential ingredients for the national dish, with a broad consensus on the ten ingredients listed above, including the lima bean.
Chorizo, which was controversially included in a paella recipe published by British chef Jamie Oliver, was most definitely not included on the list.
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