Category Archives: chorizo

spiced chorizo and chickpea stew

Posted by Gary in chickpeas, chorizo, coriander, cumin, food, nigella seeds, recipes, tomato

spiced chorizo and chickpea stew

I’ve made variations on this before, but the one killer ingredient I’ve added here that I wanted to shine a spotlight on is nigella seeds. I saw a Tweet from the excellent @pearcafe, and thought the addition of nigella seeds to their soup of the day was inspired. So I threw some into this stew and it was ace. Thanks ‘E’! I’ve never been to Bristol but if I do The Pear Café will be first on my list of places to visit :-)

Spiced chorizo and chickpea stew (serves 4):

1 teaspoon nigella seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 onion, diced

200g chorizo, in chunks

1 tin of chickpeas

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 tin tomatoes (I’ve got a bit of a thing for tinned cherry tomatoes at the moment)

250ml chicken stock

2 slices of brown bread

1 clove of garlic, peeled

  1. Get a large casserole on a high heat and add a splash of olive oil. When hot, throw in the seeds and allow to pop and sizzle for a minute. Add the onion and chorizo and stir often until the chorizo starts to bleed.
  2. Add the chickpeas (don’t bother to drain), tomatoes, paprika and stock. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes.
  3. While that simmers throw the brown bread and garlic in a food processor and whizz to a powder with a pinch of salt.
  4. In a separate pan melt some butter and when foaming add the breadcrumbs. Toss often until browned all over, then drain on kitchen paper until the stew is ready.
  5. Check the seasoning on the stew. You may find in addition to salt and pepper you may need some red wine vinegar to balance it all out. Ladle into serving dishes and top with the breadcrumbs. If you have any, a drizzle of pumpkin seed oil would be brill.

chorizo and chickpea soup

Posted by Gary in chickpeas, chorizo, food, soup, spinach and tagged with

jamie oliver's chorizo and chickpea soup

I read this post on the Word Magazine website. It was a Jamie recipe for a really corking-sounding soup which I was surprised I hadn’t come across before. I was even more surprised to discover it was in a book I’ve owned for years, Jamie’s Dinners!

It was as gutsy as it promised – nice, meaty chorizo with hearty chickpeas. If I did it again I’d add a little less liquid to make it a bit thicker, and perhaps add a dash of paprika to amp up the chorizo flavours. I have to say I’m not convinced by the grated egg either, did nothing for me at all. That aside it’s warming and frugal* – perfect for this time of year!

*if you ignore Jamie’s addition of pata negra – PATA NEGRA! – and use boring old sandwich ham like me. His version is here.

Chorizo and chickpea soup (serves 4 – 6):

200g chorizo sausage

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

8 fresh tomatoes, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 x 410g tin chickpeas, drained

1.3 litres chicken stock

6 chunks frozen spinach

2 slices ham, shredded

1 hard-boiled egg

  1. Finely chop 150g of the chorizo and fry in a large casserole dish until the orangey oil leaks out, then add the onion. Cook gently for a five minutes then add the garlic.
  2. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas and stock and bring to the boil. Add the spinach and simmer for 30 minutes until everything is tender and adjust the seasoning.
  3. As the 30 minutes comes to the end get another frying pan very hot. Slice the remaining chorizo and fry for a couple of minutes on each side until crispy. Drain on kitchen paper while you finish the soup.
  4. Whizz the soup up a bit with a hand blender (not too much!), and stir through the ham. Serve, garnishing with egg and sliced chorizo. Make sure there’s bread to hand!

tomato and chorizo salad

Posted by Gary in chorizo, tomato and tagged with

chorizo and tomato salad

When I watch cookery programmes, I try to keep a notepad nearby. If something pops up I love the look of, I can scribble it down immediately. Even if the recipe is published online afterwards I find there are little bits and pieces that are not always included in the full rundown. Extra seasoning, tips to look out for… like making notes when studying, I find it really useful to have my own version of events. They tend to come out as flow charts or odd diagrams as they make more visual sense to my brain.

So I was thumbing through an old notebook and found this recipe that I’d completely forgotten about. From Jamie Oliver’s Jamie Does… series, he cooked this summery salad in Andalucia. I had some home-grown tomatoes begging to be used, a lump of chorizo in the fridge (as there so often is) so it was a straightforward decision!

Given the absurdly inseasonal weather this weekend this fitted the bill perfectly. A little poke, sharp from vinegar with fresh tomato flavours, it goes great alongside any BBQ dish.

Tomato and chorizo salad (serves 2):

100g chorizo, cut into chunks

6 tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

Sherry vinegar

Handful of roughly chopped parsley

  1. Heat a little oil in a pan and throw in the sausage. Fry for a few minutes until browned on all sides.
  2. While the chorizo cooks, chop up the tomato and parsley and pop into a serving dish. Sprinkle with sea salt, pepper and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
  3. Once the chorizo is cooked, add a good shake of sherry vinegar and the garlic, and cook for 30 secs. Scoop out the chorizo with a slotted spoon and toss into the tomatoes (reserve the oil for frying something else really tasty, like a roast chicken or potatoes).

roast chicken with creamy chorizo butter beans

Posted by Gary in beans, chicken, chorizo and tagged with

roast chicken legs with creamy chorizo butter beans

I had a tremendous lunch at Cathy’s the other week, featuring a millionaire shortbread trifle and an unctuous confit chicken leg. The star of it for me though was a creamy chorizo and butter bean stew, a rich and textured dish spiked with tht lovely Spanish sausage. It’s one taken from Jason Atherton’s Gourmet Food for a Fiver book and it’s absolutely fantastic. I ran right home and did it myself later that week.

The only change I made was to roast the chicken instead of confit due to time constraints, no other reason. I urge you to try the beans though, they’re dynamite.

Roast chicken with creamy chorizo butter beans (serves 2):

2 chicken legs

1 head of garlic, halved

A few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked

Pinch of paprika

100g chorizo, diced

100ml chicken stock

100ml double cream

1 220g tin butter beans (I love Napolina ones)

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.
  2. Mix together half the thyme with the paprika and a generous dose of salt and pepper. Blend with a glug of olive oil and smear this paste all over the chicken legs. Pop the garlic halves in a baking tray and pop the chicken legs on top of the garlic. Bung in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour, until the juices run clear when poked with a skewer.
  3. When the chicken is about 15 minutes away from done, fry the chorizo in a pan until browned. Remove to one side and add the remaining thyme, cream and stock to the pan. Turn the heat up to get everything bubbling away. When the liquids have reduced by half, drain the butter beans and throw them in the pan, and the chorizo too.
  4. Simmer for 10 minutes and check for seasoning. Serve with wilted spinach.

30 minute spanish sizzler pizza

Posted by Gary in chorizo, mozzarella, paprika, pizza and tagged with

image

When I first received 30 Minute Meals for Christmas I tore through it, merrily Post-It noting all the ones that looked interesting, like the beef hash, chicken pie, black forest affogato… one that didn’t get the magic yellow sticker was his 30 minute pizza. How on earth can you get a passable pizza in 30 minutes? I was very doubtful it could work.

When the series came round I watched this episode with great interest. He serves it with three salads, and I was amazed that he kicked off by making one of those! He’s only got 30 minutes, and he’s not even using the full half hour for the pizza! Then as per usual, it was a whirlwind of chuck-it-in-the-blender and spread it into the pan. The method reminded me of Heston Blumenthal’s perfect pizza, where he starts it on a hot pan, then transfers it to the grill to finish. And Jamie’s effort looked pretty good, so I relented and gave it a Post-It note.

Then by happy coincidence Domino’s Pizza contact me and ask if I want to try making something that rivals the Spanish Sizzler. The pizza offers chorizo, roast chicken, green peppers and roquito peppers. I’ve previously taken on their Double Decadence with my own pesto pizza to great effect, so rolled my sleeves up in anticipation of another showdown.

Jamie’s dough turned out surprisingly OK. I made it a touch too thick, so next time I would reduce the flour down and add a touch more salt. But jolly nice all the same! How could I doubt the Jamie technique? The toppings themselves were a well-worn combo: spicy, meaty chorizo; milky mozzarella and the pop of tangy fennel seeds. Great!

30 minute Spanish Sizzler pizza (serves 2):

For the base:

1½ mugs of self-raising flour

½ mug tepid water

For the toppings:

150g chorizo sausage, sliced

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 ball of mozzarella (I used Sainsbury’s Basics mozzarella and it’s perfectly good for a pizza topping)

For the sauce:

½ tin tomatoes

About 6 basil leaves including stalks

Pinch of paprika

1 clove garlic

  1. Whack the grill on high and put your largest, widest frying pan on a very high heat. Get another pan on a low heat. Stick the normal blade in the food processor.
  2. Put the chorizo slices in the small pan and allow to brown. When crisp on one side turn off the heat while you get on with everything else.
  3. Pop the flour and water in the food processor, along with a big splash of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Whizz until it forms a solid, clean ball – shake in a touch more flour if necessary. Remove from the food processor and roll out in a rough circle until approx 1cm thick. Transfer to the frying pan and push out into the edges of the pan.
  4. Pop the tomatoes, paprika and basil in a liquidizer with a splash of extra virgin olive oil and some seasoning, then crush in the garlic. Whizz to a fine slush then spoon a thin layer on top of the pizza in the pan (leftovers make a great pasta sauce). Scatter over the fennel seeds, dot with mozzarella and place the chorizo crispy-side down on the pizza.
  5. When the pizza is crusty and starting to blacken underneath, pop the pizza under the grill. Cook for a further 4 minutes or until done.

chorizo calzone

Posted by Gary in chorizo, mozzarella, peppers, pizza, tomato

chorizo calzone

I had half the dough left over from pesto pizza, and it occurred to me that I’d never made one of my favourite Italian foods: calzone. That lovely folded pizza, like a Cornish pasty spending a gap year travelling.

I was bowled over by how tasty it was. It really was great, especially when paired with a zingy mustardy salad.

Chorizo calzone:

For the dough (makes 2 x 30cm pizzas; I used half for two calzones):

500g strong bread flour

100g fine polenta

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

7g dry yeast

4 tablespoons olive oil

300ml lukewarm water

Filling:

100g chorizo, cut into chunks

1 yellow pepper, diced

1 tin tomatoes (a good brand will help you a lot here)

6 pieces baby mozzarella

A few thyme leaves

  1. In a jug mix the yeast, oil, water and sugar together and leave for a few minutes while you get on with the other dry ingredients.
  2. For the pizza base, bring the flour, polenta and salt together in a bowl. I use a food mixer which makes the next stage dead easy.
  3. Pour the wet mix into the dry and let a dough hook do its work for about 5-6 minutes. If you’re doing it by hand push and knead it together until smooth and elastic. Cover the dough with a damp teatowel and leave somewhere warm for an hour – it should double in size.
  4. When the dough has risen, pre-heat the oven as high as it will go. If you have a pizza stone, get it in now. Otherwise a cheap but conductive metal tray will work.
  5. Fry the chorizo in a hot dry pan until one side colours. Add the peppers and continue to cook until the peppers have softened slightly. Remove the ingredients to one side with a slotted spoon, leaving the oils behind. Add the tomatoes and thyme to this pan, keeping the heat very high. Let it bubble down and reduce until thick then remove from the heat.
  6. Push the dough into a thin, round shape on a floured surface. Go as thin as you can. Spread some tomato puree over half the calzone, dot with mozzarella and add half the chorizo/pepper mix. Spoon over a little more tomato sauce, then fold the calzone over, crimping the edges.
  7. When it’s ready take it to the oven. The pizza will bake for anywhere between 10 – 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of your base and the temperature of your oven. (Quicker is better). Serve with a green salad.

pork and chestnut casserole with fried polenta

Posted by Gary in carrots, chestnuts, chorizo, leftovers, marsala, paprika, peppers, polenta, pork

pork and chestnut casserole with fried polenta

A real pot of leftovers, this one. Tons of stuff in the cupboard, fridge and freezer that all needed using up. Leave it in the casserole, come back hours later… lovely.

Pork and chestnut casserole:

500g pork shoulder, chopped

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

2 carrots, diced

2 courgettes, diced

100ml marsala wine

1 teaspoon paprika

2 sprigs rosemary

50g chorizo

250g cooked chestnuts

2 tins tomatoes

500ml chicken stock

For the polenta:

100g quick-cook polenta

400ml vegetable stock

5 dried wild mushrooms

  1. Preheat the oven to 140°C.
  2. In a large casserole, fry the pork in batches until browned. Remove to one side while you gently fry the onions and garlic in the same pan.
  3. When softened, turn the heat up, add the marsala wine and bubble furiously. When the wine has reduced, add the pork, carrot, courgette and paprika and give a ruddy good stir. Throw in the rosemary, chestnuts, chorizo, tomatoes and stock and stir thoroughly. Pop the lid on and leave in the oven for three hours. Check on it from time to time and add hot water if necessary.
  4. For the polenta, first grind the mushrooms to a powder in a pestle and mortar. Get the stock to the boil in a saucepan and gradually add the polenta and mushroom dust in a steady stream, whisking all the time. Continue stirring for another two minutes and turn on to a cold plate.
  5. When cool, cut the polenta into pieces and fry until browned and crisp. Serve with the casserole, drizzled with balsamic vinegar.

seriously good pasta bake

Posted by Gary in balsamic vinegar, basil, chorizo, courgettes, pasta, tomato and tagged with

seriously good cherry tomato and balsamic vinegar pasta bake

If you’re a regular reader of this blog you might notice I do a lot of things “from scratch” (I really hate that phrase, like a badge of snobbish one-upmanship), because I enjoy it and I like knowing what goes into my dinner. In my time of course I’ve used pasta sauces and the like, and they range from OK to pretty good to truly vomit-inducing (usually ones that involve mascarpone).

seriously good pasta sauceI wouldn’t usually blog about such a jar but I happened to use a Seriously Good pasta sauce. These are Gordon Ramsay-devised with a 10p donation to Comic Relief for each jar sold. And no, Gordon doesn’t get a penny. There’s a bunch of flavours, and the one I used happened to be cherry tomato & balsamic. Peering over the ingredients list on the label is very surprising: you can pronounce everything. And I can buy all of them in any supermarket. That’s very reassuring.

I chucked it in a pasta bake with some chorizo and courgette, and it was lovely. Well worth a try – certainly if you find it on promotion, as it was in my local Sainsbury’s. At least bask in the glow of making a small donation to a good cause :-)

Seriously good pasta bake (serves 4):

400g fusilli

100g chorizo, roughly diced

2 large courgettes

1 jar Seriously Good cherry tomato and balsamic sauce

Cheddar cheese

Some basil leaves, shredded

Splash of balsamic vinegar

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
  2. Get a pan of salted water on to boil and cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Get on with the rest of the recipe and when ready, drain until needed.
  3. In a large oven-proof pan, heat a little oil and add the chorizo. Cook briefly until it starts to colour on all sides, then add the courgette.
  4. Continue to fry for 3-4 minutes, tossing frequently so the courgette gets coated in the rich chorizo juices and is starting to turn tender.
  5. Add the sauce, then refill the jar half-full with water. Sloosh it around to gather up the dregs of the sauce and pour into the pan. Bring up to the boil and then add the drained pasta. Make sure everything is well-mixed and pop into an oven for ten minutes, or until the tops of the pasta sticking out are starting to turn dark-brown.
  6. Scatter the basil over the top, grate some cheddar over and sprinkle with balsamic. Grind a little black pepper on top and a swirl of your best extra virgin olive oil, then return to the oven for a further minute or two, until the cheese has melted. Serve piping hot.

cod with chorizo crust

Posted by Gary in breadcrumbs, chorizo, cod, food

cod with a chorizo crust served with rice

I don’t often get the opportunity to cook with fish so when I do I go all out for big, meaty indulgences. Here I’m using one of my favourite ingredients, chorizo, to lend some poke to the flaky white fish. Parsley adds a welcome freshness and helps round out the flavours.

Cod with a chorizo crust:

300g piece of cod loin

Handful of breadcrumbs

200g chorizo, diced

1 teaspoon parsley

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Fry the chorizo in a little oil until browned. Don’t drain the pan, but put half the chorizo in a food processor with the breadcrumbs and parsley. Whizz until you have rust-coloured rubble. Taste (be careful here, I could easily eat a mountain of this on its own), maybe adding a splash of red wine vinegar if you think it could handle it.
  2. Press one side of the cod loin into the breadcrumbs, packing them densely. Fry in the same pan as before on the breadcrumb side until browned (about 4 minutes), then pop the pan in the oven for another 8 minutes. The cod will be ready when it flakes apart when squeezed between your fingers.
  3. After removing the pan from the oven, toss the remaining chorizo in the pan to warm through, and serve with wild rice and creme fraiche.

chicken and chorizo kebabs

Posted by Gary in chicken, chorizo, food, paprika, peppers, red onion

chicken and chorizo kebabs with red onion and red pepper salad

As England melted under the usual immediate and surprising burst of sun + heat, I retreated to the paddling pool. Lovely it was too. Dinner has to feature a BBQ though. What’s in the fridge?

This is the result. A smoky and meaty BBQ skewered treat accompanied by a tangy and sweet pepper and onion salad. Marvellous. Make sure you really scorch the chorizo – the burn really accentuates the smoky flavour and encourages it to give up it’s powerful juices.

And a piece of advice when using chicken breast on the BBQ: it’s extremely likely all the juice will disappear from the breast meat before it’s cooked all the way through due to the not-so-controllable heat of the grill. Always brine poultry before barbecuing to ensure tender, juicy meat, powerful flavours and consistent cooking.

Chicken and chorizo kebabs with red pepper and red onion salad:

For the kebabs:

2 chicken breasts, sliced into strips

10cm chorizo, coarsely diced

For the salad:

1 red onion, sliced

1 red pepper

5 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 tablespoon chopped mint

  1. Make a 8% brine solution for the chicken. Add whatever aromatics you like to this, I used black peppercorns, a tablespoon of honey and a star anise. Leave the chicken to soak in this for at least a couple of hours and preferably more than 6.
  2. Just before you make the kebabs, get the salad started. Mix the red wine vinegar with paprika and a pinch each of sugar and salt. Leave the onion in this to tenderize and mellow.
  3. Leave the red pepper directly on the flames of the barbecue until charred all over. Seal in a freezer bag for ten minutes to steam and soften.
  4. Skewer the chorizo and chicken on to sticks and barbecue over a medium-high-heat, turning occasionally.
  5. Remove the pepper from the bag and scrape down with a spoon to remove the skin. Dice and add to the red onion and add a splash of extra virgin olive oil, and adjust the seasoning.
  6. When the chicken is cooked all the way through, serve with the salad and drizzle over the rest of the dressing left in the bowl.