Oh Chorizo, how I love thee, let me count the ways!

An absolute stock cupboard essential, chorizo adds oodles of flavour (thats a technical term, feel free to look it up) to pretty much anything.  Chopped and fried to release the delicious oils and spices, this spicy Spanish sausage can be added to soups, stews and pasta sauces.  Its favourite bedfellows are – in my opinion – chicken, tomatoes and white beans.

Ingredients:

Serves 2

• 2 chicken breasts (diced)
• 1 large onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 100g dry cured chorizo (cut into small chunks)
• 1 red bell pepper
• 2 tins of butter beans
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1tbsp tomato puree
• 1/2 teaspoon each of ground fennel, ground cumin, chilli flakes, thyme
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 500g gnocchi
• Sour cream to serve

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Method:

Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a large pan and (before turning on the heat) add the chorizo.  Heat on medium-high until the chorizo turns crisp at the edges and releases all of its delicious oil.  Remove the chorizo to a bowl (using a spatula or slotted spoon to keep all of the oils in the pan) and add the diced chicken breast to the same pan, frying until browned on all sides.  Remove the chicken to the same bowl with the chorizo.

Finely dice the onion, and garlic and cut the pepper into chunks before adding to the pan.  Once the onion has turned translucent add the paprika and other spices along with a little splash of water (or wine if you’ve got some lying around) and the tomato puree.  Stir for a minute or two and then add the tinned tomatoes, the beans and the chicken and chorizo from earlier.    Bring to a bubble (you may need to add a splash of water if things aren’t looking particularly ‘saucy’.  This will depend on how much water comes out of the tomatoes) and turn the heat down low.

In a large frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter on a medium high heat.  Once the butter starts to bubble, add the gnocchi to the pan.  Cook until crispy on all sides, tossing the pan only occasionally.  Transfer the gnocchi to a tray or bowl lined with a couple of sheets of kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.  Bin the kitchen paper and season the gnocchi with fine salt.

Season the chicken, chorizo and beans mixture to taste with salt and pepper and serve alongside the crispy gnocchi.  Enjoy with a glass of Rioja.