Spicy Chorizo and Tomato Pasta

Here we are again, yet another delicious recipe inspired by my trip to Spain. As you can tell, I have an exceptional capacity for eating anything remotely Iberian. Happily, this dish, likePatatas Revolconas, reminds one immediately of Spanish cuisine; the culprit in both recipes beingpaprika. I’m sure that I’ll eventually emerge, with my skin coloured a perfect shade of red and my aura pervaded by a spicy scent, from my love affair with paprika, buttoday is not that day.

The first time I had this particular dish was inAvila, the closest city to Navalmoral, which is in many ways the Spanish equivalent of Carcassonne –the famous crusading city of Languedoc-Roussillon(formerly Languedoc). My girlfriend and I were looking for a place to lunch when we discovered a restaurant in which one could get三个课程和饮料大约10欧元. Though it turned out that almost every restaurant in the city offered this set-menu, it was too good a deal to pass up. Spicy chorizo and tomato pasta fromhappyspicyhour.comis what I had for my starter and it was followed by a veal entrecote steak, lemon mousse and half a bottle of red – the entire meal was outstanding, though I felt a little criminal for payingonly a fraction of what it would have cost in Britain.

To be honest, I hadn’t even thought about preparing this until I took a trip to my local supermarket this afternoon. What convinced me of the necessity to recreate that starter was the discovery of a new line of passata, a carton of which costs a mere29p– it was the ideal ingredient. I was so enamoured with the notion that I scooted off home and got… busy – it went down a treat. The sauce may have only three ingredients, yetthe thickness of the passata and the flavours naturally harboured by the chorizo belie its simplicity and make for an exceedingly rich and flavourful meal. Please enjoy thisrecipe, yet another great taste of Spain.

For more quick pasta ideas, try my recipes forCavolo Nero with Pasta and AlmondsandKale and Cabbage Pasta…

Chorizo and Tomato Pasta {recipe}

Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

• 100g spicy chorizo

• 400g carton of passata

• 1 tbsp smoked paprika

• 300g pasta

Method:

1. Cube the chorizo and begin to gently fry it in a saucepan, save a little for a garnish. Pop the pasta on to boil at this point – this tomato sauce doesn’t need cooking for more than20 minutessince it doesn’t contain the bitter seeds. Add the paprika to the chorizo, before tipping in the passata.

2. The sauce will be done once the pasta is cooked. Season to taste and mix the sauce into the pasta. Serve with a little raw, cubed chorizo.

Cost:Chorizo is a relatively cheap cured meat, perhaps because of its relative popularity. As such, this entire meal should set one back a mere£1.65– a rather compelling proposition, I think.