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Posts Tagged ‘Chorizo’

Mussels with chorizo and cider

We had a hankering for mussels, as we often do, and thought this sounded a bit different. There’s no finishing of the sauce required once the mussels are cooked unlike other classic mussel dishes. Last minute finishing can be fiddly, especially with guests, so this worked well for us. Easily scalable, provided you have a big pot, and a good party dish.

Wine Suggestion: we used Stonewell Dry Cider from Kinsale in County Cork for this dish which has a really good depth of flavour and it would equally work well as the accompaniment. Some ciders are lighter but the robust nature of the chorizo and mussels needed a more robust flavour like the Stonewell.

Alternately if you would prefer to drink some wine we’d suggest a good South African Chenin Blanc, like Adi Badenhorst’s Secateurs. The ripe yellow apple flavours are a good compliment and the freshness, texture and zing provide a good balance. The Secateurs is a great go-to wine in our house and we highly recommend it!

Spanish mussels with cider & chorizo – serves 4

  • 2kg mussels
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 200g chorizo, skinned and cut into chunks
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 500ml dry cider
  • 3 tbsp finely chopped parsley

Wash the mussels really well and scrape off any barnacles and beardy bits. Tap any opened mussels on the sink and throw them away if they don’t close.

Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large pan and sauté the chorizo with the onions until slightly coloured and softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.

Add the mussels, cider and some black pepper, then cover. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and steam until the mussels have opened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the parsley and serve.

(Original recipe from Food From Plenty by Diana Henry, Mitchell Beazley, 2010.)

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So we’re back after a brief hiatus due to holidays and a broken laptop. In the absence of a pizza oven, we tried cooking pizza on our gas barbecue instead. The result was pretty good and produced a pizza-oven style crust that we never manage to achieve in the regular oven. Pizza dough is easy to make with a standing mixer and dough hook. You can chill the dough for a couple of days or freeze it.

Pizza Dough – for 4 pizzas

  • 500g ’00’ flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp dried yeast (not fast-action)
  • 400ml warm water
  • oil, for greasing

Put the flour and salt in the mixer bowl and mix the yeast into the water. Wait 5 minutes to check that the yeast is working – little bits will start rising to the top.

Turn on the motor and pour in the liquid. Keep the speed on medium-high and it should come together in a ball. If the bottom is sticking tip in 1-2 tbsp of flour. Knead for 5-7 minutes until the dough is shiny and springs back when you press your finger into it. Try to avoid adding too much extra flour the dough should be slightly sticky.

Use oiled hands to remove the dough from the bowl and hook. Oil another bowl and put the dough in it. Turn the dough around to lightly coat it in the oil. Cover tightly with cling film and and a tea towel, then place in a warm, draught-free spot until the dough has doubled in size. It will take between 2 and 4 hours to rise depending on how warm a day it is. (If you don’t need the dough for a day or two, put it in the fridge straight away, take out 3-4 hours before using and punch it down before bringing together on a floured surface.)

Divide the dough into 4 pieces, then shape into balls – dusting in flour as they will be sticky. Keep the dough balls covered with a tea towel or cling film while you prep the toppings. (You can also freeze them in sealed bags. Thaw in the fridge and bring to room temperature 3 hours before using.)

Use your fingers to gently stretch out the dough into pizza shapes. When they have stretched to about 16cm, put the disc over the tops of your hands and use them to stretch it to about 25cm. Ours was pretty wonky and ripped a bit but no matter.

Preheat the gas barbecue and turn down to medium-low so the bottom of the pizza doesn’t burn.

Put the pizza onto a floured baking sheet with no edge or a large wooden board. Slide the dough onto the grill, close the lid (if you have one) and cook for 3-4 minutes. The dough will puff up and is ready when the bottom-side has light brown stripes. Use tongs to pull the dough off and turn upside down.

Put the pizza toppings (see our suggestion below) on the cooked side and place the pizza back on the grill, uncooked side down, and shut the lid. Cook for another 3-4 minutes and remove when the cheese is melted and the toppings are hot.

(Pizza dough recipe from BBC Good Food)

Chorizo pizza with peppers & Manchego – enough for 2 pizzas

  • ½ quantity of pizza dough above, divided into 2 balls
  • 4 cooking chorizo sausages
  • 4-6 peeled plum tomatoes from a tin, drained
  • 100g Manchego, shaved
  • 100g mozzarella, cut into 2cm cubes
  • ½ Romero pepper, thinly sliced
  • pinch of chilli flakes
  • 2 handfuls spinach leaves

Prepare the dough as outlined above.

Thickly slice the chorizo and pan-fry until crispy. Remove and set aside. Cook one side of the pizzas.

Crush 2-3 of the tomatoes with your hands and drain in a sieve, then spread on the cooked side of the pizzas. Top with both cheeses, the pepper and chorizo. Season and add chilli flakes.

Grill, covered, until the cheese is melted. Finish with the spinach leaves and a few extra shavings of Manchego.

(Pizza topping recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Venison & Chorizo Cassoulet

Cassoulets are rich gamey stews with white beans and baked in the oven; they are perfect for cold winter days. We used a very lean cut of venison and were concerned about the long cooking time, but as the temperature is so low, the meat becomes meltingly tender. This couldn’t be easier to assemble and gives you plenty of time to relax and read a book by the fire.

Wine Suggestion: Ideally you would pair this with an equally rich & gamey wine – perhaps an old Northern Rhône Syrah, a red Burgundy or a good Oregon Pinot Noir.

Venison & Chorizo Cassoulet – serves 4

  • 600g venison, diced
  • 100g cooking chorizo, diced
  • 20g butter
  • 50g mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled & chopped
  • 150ml red wine
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 200g tinned haricot beans, rinsed and drained
  • a pinch of dried tarragon
  • 2 tsp redcurrant jelly
  • 300ml chicken stock

Heat the oven to 150C/Fan 130C/gas 2.

Put all of the ingredients into a casserole with a lid. Stir, season well and cover with the lid.

Cook in the oven for 2½ – 3 hours, or until the meat is very tender.

If the sauce is a bit thin, transfer the dish to the hob and simmer gently with the lid off until you get a nice consistency.

That’s it!

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Pot-roast Chicken with Chorizo, Leek and Cider

A great array of flavours and super-moist roast chicken. Chorizo cooked in cider is often served as a tapa in Spain and it’s delicious!

Wine Suggestion: A Spanish cider would be of course be great with this or failing that a good quality dry cider from somewhere else. If you feel like wine we’d recommend a really smooth Rioja.

Pot-roasted Chicken with Chorizo, Leeks & Cider – serves 4

  • 1 x 1.75kg chicken
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cooking chorizo sausages, sliced
  • 50g butter
  • 700g leeks, washed and sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 300g baby carrots, trimmed and peeled
  • Leaves from 2 large sprigs of thyme
  • 2 fresh bay leaves
  • 200ml dry cider

Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 3.

Season the cavity and outside of the chicken with salt and black pepper.

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish and brown the chicken on all sides until golden, then set aside.

Lower the heat and add the chorizo, butter, leeks, garlic, carrots, thyme and bay leaves. Cover and cook gently until the leeks have softened.

Place the chicken on top of the vegetables in the casserole dish, pour over the cider, then cover and cook in the oven for 1 hour. Remove the lid from the casserole dish and turn the oven up to 200C/Gas 6. Continue to cook for another 20 minutes or until the chicken skin is browned.

Remove the chicken from the casserole and onto a carving board, cover with foil. Skim the excess fat from the surface of the vegetable juices, then place over a medium heat and simmer vigorously for 5 minutes to reduce. Season to taste with more salt if needed.

To carve the chicken, remove the legs and cut each one in half at the joint. Carve the breast in slices. Use a slotted spoon to put the chorizo and vegetables onto the centre of the plates and place the chicken on top. Spoon the cooking juices over to serve.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Spain, BBC Books, 2011.)

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Pork, chorizo & spinach paella

A delicious paella recipe by Tamazin Day-Lewis (inspired by Sam & Sam Clark of Moro). This is easy to cook and uses relatively cheap ingredients. It has already appeared on our table a few times since this picture was taken.

Wine Suggestion: This dish is full of flavour so you will need a similarly flavoursome wine. A Spanish red from Ribera del Duero would make a great match.

Paella with Pork, Chorizo and Spinach – serves 4 

  • 7 tbsp olive oil
  • 340g pork fillet, halved lengthways and sliced into strips
  • 110g mild chorizo, cut into small pieces
  • 2 large onions, finely chopped
  • 1 large green pepper, finely chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 225g calasparra rice
  • 1 tsp smoked Spanish paprika
  • 4 piquillo peppers (we like the tinned Spanish ones)
  • 850ml hot chicken stock
  • 500g spinach, washed and drained
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Heat the oil over a high heat in a paella or large frying pan, then stir-fry the pork strips for a few seconds so they are still undercooked. Season with salt and pepper, then remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.

Lower the heat and fry the chorizo for a minute. Add the onion and green pepper and cook for 20 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes. Stir the rice into the pan and toss for about a minute until coated with oil. Season with salt and pepper, then add the paprika and peppers followed by the hot stock. Simmer for 15 minutes or until there is just a thin layer of liquid around the rice.

Meanwhile, wilt the spinach briefly in a pan, then drain and remove it. Scatter the pork over the rice followed by the spinach and gently push them partly into the oily liquid using the back of a spoon. Turn the heat off, then cover the pan tightly with foil and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve with the lemon wedges.

(Original recipe from Tamasin’s Kitchen Bible by Tamasin Day-Lewis, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2005.)

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We made this with some leftover chorizo that had been cluttering the fridge for a while. It works really well before dinner with some toasted bread but equally as part of a Tapas selection, or starter with olives etc.  Multiply the quantities depending on how much sausage you have. You can also make individual portions in smaller jars. Leave this in the fridge for at least a week before serving and it will mellow and subtly take on the flavours of the herbs and oil, so make sure the olive oil is decent and herbs are fresh.

Herb-marinated Sausage 

  • 1 cured sausage e.g. chorizo
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 10 juniper berries
  • 2 thyme sprigs
  • 1 bay leaf
  • a small sprig of fresh rosemary
  • 300-600ml olive oil
  • toasted bread, to serve

Slice the sausage and remove the skin. Put the sausage slices in a clean jar with the garlic, juniper berries, thyme, bay leaf and rosemary. Add enough olive oil to cover, close the lid and leave in the fridge for at least a week.

Serve with toasted bread.

(Original recipe from Stéphane Reynaud’s Pork & Sons, Phaidon, 2005.)

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Surprisingly light and healthy despite the big, rich flavours.

Red Lentil & Chorizo Soup – to serve 6

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 200g cooking chorizo, peeled and diced
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • pinch of cumin seeds
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika, plus extra for sprinkling
  • pinch of golden caster sugar
  • small splash red wine vinegar
  • 250g red lentils
  • 2 x 400g cans chopped tomato
  • 850ml chicken stock
  • plain yogurt, to serve

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the chorizo and cook until crispy and the oil has run. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside but leave the oil in the pan. Fry the onion, carrot and cumin seeds for about 10 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for another minute. Sprinkle in the the paprika and sugar, cook for a minute then add the vinegar. Simmer briefly, then add the lentils and pour over the tomatoes and chicken stock.

Stir well, then simmer for 30 minutes or until the lentils are soft. Blitz in a blender but you don’t want it completely smooth.

Serve drizzled with the yogurt, a little extra olive oil if you like, and a sprinkle of paprika.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Chorizo Pilaf

This is another successful low-calorie dish as it fills you up and is dead simple to make. We’re getting near the end of this diet we promise!

Chorizo pilaf – to serve 4

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced
  • 250g cooking chorizo, sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 250g basmati rice
  • 600ml stock
  • 1 lemon, zest peeled off in thick strips, plus wedges to serve
  • 2 fresh bay leaves
  • handful parsley, chopped

Heat the oil in a large shallow pan with a lid. Add the onion and cook for 5-8 minutes until soft and golden. Push to the side of the pan and add the chorizo. Cook until lightly browned and the oils have started to release into the pan.

Stir in the garlic and paprika, then add the tomatoes. Bubble over a medium heat for 5 minutes, then add the rice, stock, lemon zest and bay leaves. Stir well and bring to the boil, then put the lid on and cook over a very low heat for 12 minutes.

Turn off the heat and leave to sit for a further 10-15 minutes. Stir through the parsley and serve with the lemon wedges.

Wine Suggestion: Look for a spicy Spanish red, like a Jumilla or a Montsant, as they tend to be good value. They tend to be a bit richer and full-bodied but their inherent juiciness from good producers and ripe, juicy tannins should provide an excellent match for the flavoursome chorizo, paprika and lemon flavours in this dish.

(Original recipe by Lizzie Harris in BBC Good Food Magazine, June 2012)

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This dish delivers bags of flavour and yet is simple to make – great for a crowd, or on an evening when you are craving something tasty and yet quick and easy. This idea comes from the Tapas Feast in Jamie’s 30-minute meals.

Glazed Chorizo – to serve 6 as a tapas

  • 250g good-quality whole chorizo
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp runny honey

Slice the chorizo into 2cm chunks. Fry in a small frying pan with a little olive oil and toss now and then until the chunks are crispy and golden. Lightly bash the 2 unpeeled garlic cloves and add to the pan. After a minute  drain away most of the fat so you are left with about 1 tbsp. Add the vinegar and honey and leave it to reduce to a sticky glaze. Keep shaking the pan to make sure the sauce doesn’t stick.

Serve with chunks of bread to mop up the sauce and a glass of Fino Sherry (we like Lustau).

(Original recipe from Jamie’s 30-Minute Meals by Jamie Oliver, Penguin, 2010.)

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These looked so pretty! The flavours really compliment each other and the ones to the right of the picture have no chorizo and still tasted fab!

Prawn, chorizo & tomato kebabs – makes 12

  • 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
  • a couple of sprigs of thyme broken into small pieces
  • 12 raw, peeled tiger prawns
  • 12 slices from a whole chorizo sausage
  • 12 basil leaves, cut in half

Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Put the tomatoes cut-side up on a baking tray, top with a thin lice of garlic, a piece of thyme, a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle of salt on each. Cook for 30 minutes.

Fry the chorizo and prawns in a little oil in two separate pans, keeping everything warm. Push a prawn, a piece of basil, a piece of chorizo, some more basil and a tomato half on to cocktail sticks or little skewers.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

Wine Suggestion: We like to serve sparkling wine with canapés – especially at this time of year. Try a dry sparkling rosé for an occasion or a still rosé from Bordeaux or Provence which will give a bit of texture from the tannins as well as a savoury dryness.


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We were kindly lent Thomasina Miers’ Mexican Food made simple by our friend Jenny and this is our first recipe. Very tasty! Serve with some warm flour tortillas and a green salad.

Queso fundido – serves 4-5 as a starter 

  • 3 ripe tomatoes
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 120g chorizo cooking sausage, casings removed
  • 1/2 a white onion, finely diced
  • 1/4 tsp ground cumin
  • 150g mozzarella, grated
  • 150g mature cheddar, grated
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Cover the tomatoes with boiling water and leave for 20 seconds. Drain and pierce them with a knife so you can peel them easily. Scoop out the seeds and dice the flesh into small cubes.

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and brown the chorizo over a medium heat, breaking it up with a spoon as you go. Add the onion and cumin and cook for 5-10 minutes or until the onion is translucent. Add the tomatoes and cook until most of the moisture has evaporated from the pan and you have a mince-like texture. Season.

Spread the mixture on to the bottom of a gratin dish so that is just covers the bottom. Cover with the grated cheeses and put in the oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Or you can stick it under the grill.

Warm your tortillas in a hot dry frying pan for a few seconds on each side. Spoon some Queso fundido and salad on your tortilla and roll them up to eat.

Wine Suggestion: You could try a Mexican Zinfandel like LA Cetto from Baja California or it might be easier to pick up a Spanish Garnacha which should be medium-bodied – don’t go for something too complex or concentrated here. A beer would work too!

(Original recipe from Thomasina Miers Mexican Food Made Simple, Hodder & Stoughton, 2010)

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Oh so tasty and perfect for a weeknight or even weekend brunch/lunch. If you’ve been watching Rick Stein’s Spain on the tv you will have heard him rave about Sherry vinegar – really worth having in the cupboard as you can use if in lots of dishes.

Chorizo & soft egg salad – to serve 4 (or halve for 2)

  • 500g baby new potatoes, halved
  • 4 eggs
  • 225g green beans, trimmed
  • 225g chorizo, sliced
  • 1 garlic clove, sliced
  • 2 tbsp Sherry vinegar
  • 2 tbsp chopped parsley
  1. Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water for 12 minutes, adding the eggs after 6 minutes, and the beans for the final 2 minutes. Drain and cool the eggs under cold running water.
  2. Meanwhile fry chorizo for a minute or two, until starting to crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the oil in the pan. Add the garlic to the chorizo oil and cook gently for 1 minute.
  3. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the vinegar and parsley, then toss with the potatoes, beans, chorizo and some seasoning. Shell the eggs, cut into quarters and add to the salad.
(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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We flicked through Stéphane Raynaud’s Pork & Sons book in a fabulous pub in England called The Nut Tree. We had the nicest lunch and Jono got so over-excited he proposed just after (though I think he might of had that bit planned before he wooed me with the nice lunch)[I had actually been planning it for about 4 months – Jono]. We had to buy the book after all that,  it’s been on our shelves for over a year now and we have only managed to cook one recipe (see Sunday Barbecue Kebabs). Believe me that is no reflection on the book which is outstanding – though you do have to like pig. So we’ve gone for two porky recipes this weekend and this is the first. Really easy for a Friday night when energy levels are generally low but you want something really tasty – it’s now on our list of things to cook for friends. We found the recipe timings were a bit out which may be down to our cooker so excuse the vague instructions – don’t let it put you off, we promise it works.

Chorizo tortilla – to serve 6

  • 120ml olive oil, plus a bit extra for brushing
  • 600g small potatoes, cut into large cubes
  • 200g chorizo sausage, sliced
  • 3 onions, sliced
  • 5 eggs
  • 100ml double cream
Preheat the oven to 120°C (250°F/Gas Mark 1/2). Brush an ovenproof dish with oil – we used a deep pie dish.

Heat 5 tbsps of the olive oil in a frying pan. Add the potatoes and cook over a medium heat until just beginning to colour – they also need to be fairly soft but not falling apart. Meanwhile, heat the rest of the oil in another pan. Add the chorizo and onions and cook over a low heat until the onions have softened. When both are nice and soft and smell delicious you can mix the onion, chorizo and potatoes together. Beat the eggs until foaming ,then add the cream.

Spoon the chorizo mix into your dish and pour over the beaten eggs to cover. Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins (or even longer if necessary – I think we left it for 25 to make sure the egg was set and then flashed it under the grill so it went brown on top). You can test it by inserting a knife – it should come out dry.

Serve with a rocket salad – we dressed ours with a mustardy vinaigrette which was good.

Wine suggestion: Our first thoughts were a Spanish red but in the end we went for a white with a bit of structure – think Chardonnay or another oaked white like Bordeaux.

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Yes we do know that it’s June but our weather has been much more suitable for stew than salad in the last few weeks – it’s freezing! If we weren’t so stingy we’d turn the heating back on. As central heating in June is against our principles we’ve had to resort to stew instead. It’s kind of a summery stew as it’s full of spinach which is in season now and is also very good for you.

Hopefully we’ve convinced you that it’s ok to eat stew in June.

Spanish chickpea, chorizo & spinach stew – to feed 4

  • 3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, finely diced
  • 1 celery stick, finely diced
  • few sprigs of thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 200g chorizo, diced
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp hot smoked paprika (it’s more common to find the sweet (dulce) one here so just add a bit of chilli powder as well)
  • 2 tins of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1-2 tbsp Sherry vinegar
  • 400g spinach leaves, washed and drained
  1. Heat the oil in a big pan, then gently fry the onion for 3-4 minutes until it starts to soften. Stir in the carrot, celery, thyme and bay leaves. Season and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring now and then. Add the garlic, chorizo, cinnamon and smoked paprika. Fry gently until the vegetables soften and the chorizo starts to crisp up and release its oils.
  2. Stir in the chickpeas, vinegar and 150ml of water, then bring to a simmer for 1-2 minutes until the chickpeas have heated up. Add the spinach, then stir through the chickpeas until it wilts a bit – it will all fit in just be patient!
  3. Season and serve with some crusty bread to mop up juice.
Wine Suggestion: A spanish red would be good – try a Joven (young), fruity Rioja or  do like the Spanish and have a glass of Sherry.
(Original recipe by Thomasina Myers for BBC Good Food)

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