If Valencians are famous for anything, it’s for being uncompromising when it comes to our most traditional recipes. Our characteristic phrase, “That’s not paella, it’s rice with stuff,” has become a hallmark that warns the most daring that it’s very dangerous to mess with Valencian cuisine.
But the world belongs to the brave, and although we Valencians ourselves aren’t immune to culinary judgment, we have a little more freedom to innovate and explore new combinations. That’s exactly what Joan Aznar, chef at Babeando, has done : he’s fused traditional baked rice with his specialty—the hamburger.
A creation as viral as it is controversial, which he’s shared on social media along with all the recipe’s secrets: potato brioche, a base of chickpea hummus from the puchero, Asturian beef, pork belly , a reduction of the puchero broth, oven-roasted tomato and garlic sauce, and, to top it off, blood sausage crumble. An interpretation that may offend purists, but one that promises to surprise with every bite.
Babeando is one of the leading burger spots in Valencia and throughout the country. In 2025, it was named the best burger in the Valencian Community by The Golden Ibérica Burger for “La Nieta Preferida,” a burger inspired by a ham croquette.
Xàtiva, the home of baked rice
Valencian paella is the star dish of our cuisine, but it has a lesser-known sibling that many consider even better: baked rice. A dish that, like most, has no clear origin, but which most experts attribute to the region of La Costera and its capital, Xàtiva.
To honor his roots—and because this month marks the 776th edition of the Fira de Xàtiva, the oldest fair in the Valencian Community—Aznar and Babeando have decided to dedicate this month’s burger to their hometown’s signature dish.
