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Best chorizo recipes: 8 of our favourites for summer

by Great British Chefs 10 July 2019

The warmth and piquancy of chorizo always transports us to Spain, and memories of al fresco dinners in the glow of the evening sun. Here are eight of our favourite chorizo recipes

Great British Chefs

Great British Chefs is a team of passionate food lovers dedicated to bringing you the latest food stories, news and reviews.

Great British Chefs

Great British Chefs is a team of passionate food lovers dedicated to bringing you the latest food stories, news and reviews.

Spain is home to an incredible array of wonderful produce, but nothing symbolises and represents Spanish food as readily as chorizo. It has become an emblem for Spanish food culture, a fixture on our shopping lists and a staple in our fridges thanks to its ability to elevate almost any dish. Chorizo is so ubiquitous these days, it’s easy to forget that it’s a special product – one that takes time to make properly. Good chorizo starts with good quality pork and pork fat, which is then macerated in sweet and hot pimentón (paprika) as well as plenty of pepper, garlic and oregano. The result is simultaneously sweet, smokey, rich and meaty, with a gentle spice running through – a game changer for meat, fish and vegetable dishes.

Chorizo comes in many forms, though. Chorizo sarta is fully-cured, often tied in a horseshoe, and eaten straight from the packet with cheeses and a glass of sherry. Chorizo ristra is a whole different beast – it’s only semi-cured and has a texture more like a traditional sausage, so it needs cooking before you eat it. Chorizo achorizado is cured, but smaller than the traditional sarta, and designed to be braised in soups and stews. Each type of chorizo varies in strength, size and flavour, but they all have their different uses – check out our handy chorizo guide for more, and read on for eight of our favourite chorizo recipes!

Chorizo

Recipe Collection

Spanish spice: choosing the right chorizo

by Great British Chefs

Crispy poached egg with chorizo jam and raw scallops

Crispy poached egg with chorizo jam and raw scallo...

Crispy poached egg with chorizo jam and raw scallops

by Robert Thompson

Robert Thompson delicious crispy poached egg and chorizo jam dish is an all day affair – equally suitable for breakfast, lunch and dinner! The cornerstone of the dish is a clever chorizo oil, made by infusing chorizo into neutral oil for twenty four hours; the chorizo oil then becomes a jam, which dresses sweet, raw scallops, diced chorizo and a pristine crispy poached egg. A perfect example of chorizo can take a simple breakfast dish and make it into something special.

Pork belly and chorizo cassoulet terrine, chorizo mayonnaise and pickles

Pork belly and chorizo cassoulet terrine with chor...

Pork belly and chorizo cassoulet terrine with chorizo mayonnaise and pickles

by Robert Thompson

Chorizo is fantastic as part of a stuffing for a piece of meat – as it cooks, it infuses the meat with flavour from the inside, and all those delicious oils render out into the rest of the stuffing and the joint. Robert Thompson doubles up on the pork, rolling a piece of pork belly with a stuffing of chorizo, sausage meat, cannellini beans, herbs and seasoning, before gently poaching for three hours. His chorizo oil features again – this time it is used to make a punchy mayonnaise, which is served as a garnish along with a salad of crispy fried capers, pickled shallot rings, sliced chorizo and parsley.

Cod with chorizo and white beans

by Adam Bennett

Adam Bennett is a master of the classics, and this cod with white beans and chorizo dish is no exception. The cod – lightly cured, then roasted gently – is the centrepiece, but the hidden star is the garnish – white beans braised with onion, carrot, celery and vegetable stock, then augmented with a generous handful of chopped chorizo. Beautiful, seasonal cooking.

Chorizo, Iberico ham and tarragon linguine

Chorizo, Iberian ham and tarragon linguini

Chorizo, Iberico ham and tarragon linguine

by Dominic Chapman

Dom Chapman’s pasta dish takes a little inspiration from the mighty pasta carbonara, but riffs on the Italian classic by adding diced chorizo, Iberico ham, peas and turnip tops (known as cime di rapa in Italy). The foundation of the dish starts with chorizo, which is sweated in butter with shallots and garlic before Dom adds double cream and the rest of his ingredients to make a sauce. He tosses his linguine through, then finishes with parmesan, peas and fried breadcrumbs for a bit of extra crunch.

Steamed mussels with cider, leeks and chorizo

by Georgina Fuggle

Mussels with cider is a much-loved bistro classic, but the gentle spice and intense flavour of chorizo takes this humble dish to the next level. The key is to release all the flavourful oils from inside the chorizo – Georgina fries slices of chorizo gently in olive oil and butter, then sweats her leeks, garlic and thyme in those wonderful oils. The beauty of mussels is not just in their sweet flavour, but also in their ease – they only need a few minutes to cook, which means you can easily have a delicious dinner on the table in less than an hour.

Chorizo with minted peas

by Angel Zapata Martin

Barrafina executive chef Angel Zapata Martin knows a thing or two about chorizo, having grown up in Barcelona. His chorizo and minted peas dish looks simple on the surface, but there’s clever cookery underneath that brings together these summery flavours. A base of jamón serrano, shallots and garlic is fried to a deep, savoury paste and forms the base of the broth, whilst the chorizo, fresh peas and mint sit happily on the surface.

Chorizo-stuffed squid

by Helen Graves

Stuffing squid is an easy way to serve this mollusc with a bit of panache, and chorizo make a wonderful pairing – the squid is soft and delicate, but still holds up to the warmth and salinity of the crisp chorizo inside. The cooking is versatile too – it’s definitely best seared on a barbecue, but you can pop it in the oven if the weather isn’t looking so friendly. As the squid cooks, the fat from the chorizo renders out into stuffing, infusing the whole dish with amazing flavour.

Chorizo flatbreads with pink pickled onions and feta yoghurt

Chorizo flatbreads with pink pickled onions and fe...

Chorizo flatbreads with pink pickled onions and feta yoghurt

by Helen Graves

Helen Graves chorizo flatbreads are perfect for a summer picnic or barbecue. She takes soft chorizo ristra and removes it from its casing, before flashing under the grill for a couple of minutes to cook it through. The warmth of the chorizo it tempered with a creamy yoghurt and feta dressing, and some quick pickled onions add a little piquancy, making this simple flatbread a real delight for the senses! You can really speed things up by buy ready-made flatbreads, but we’d recommend making your own if you have the time.