Bomba rice

Bomba is a Spanish variety grown, among other places, under two protected designations of origin. The Arroz de Valencia PDO covers wetlands in the provinces of Valencia, Alicante and Castellón, largely within the Albufera Natural Park; rice covers about 16,000 ha in total. The Calasparra PDO lies in the valleys of the Segura and Mundo rivers in the municipalities of Calasparra, Moratalla and Hellín, at 341–500 m above sea level.

According to the Valencian specification, the raw Bomba grain averages 5.2 mm, with a length-to-width ratio of 1.8, 99 % pearliness and 24.9 % amylose, against 16.3 % in Senia. The specification links the amylose content to the way the rice absorbs the flavour of the stock while staying firm.

The Calasparra specification describes Bomba as a round, harder grain that takes longer to cook, lengthens markedly and absorbs a great deal of water. Valencian cooking builds paella, soupy rices and oven-baked rice on the varieties of this area, and Bomba is one of the varieties used for paella.