A dash of pig fat adds extra goodness to any dish.Now that is something which is always echoed by TV's favorite chef Anthony Bourdain.Being an ardent fan of his, I really know how true that statement is.Two pieces of dry bread become magical when layered with pepperoni.So when we are cooking with piggy goodness, that dish royally treats our taste buds.So we decided to do just that: make it a piggy feast: Chorizo night. Tony took a backseat, as hubby decided to create some Mexican Chorizo magic. Chorizo is basically a Spanish Pork Sausage. The Mexican variety is made of Pork(Salivary Glands, Lymph Nodes, Pork Cheek,) Paprika, Salt, Mustard Powder, Garlic Powder, Oil, Vinegar and Soy Flour. It usually does not come in a casing, and can becooked like any ground meat. It was Chef Aaron Sanchez who came to hubby's rescue with his Chorizo and Potato Pepper Piccadillo recipe. To speak in desi terms, it is a spicier Aloo Keema, which caresses the taste buds in a comforting way, and where the mutton keema is replaced with a spicy ground pork. We are after all a TV obsessed couple, where our kitchen often becomes Kitchen Stadium, where television and food meet creatively.
It was my desire for something spicy, which led to the culinary replication and adaptation.When it comes to heat, if its not Indian, then its Mexican which satisfies my spicy taste buds and heat seeking soul.We did not have jalapenos at home, and we had also run out of olive oil. So the jalapenos in the recipe were replaced by the normal green chillies which we had picked up from the local Indian store. Yes, its the very same chilly which gives Maachher Jhol, the heat quotient and that sublime flavour.The absent olive oil, was replaced by good old canola oil. The taste did not even take a beating. We opted for some Indian bread rather than tacos or tortillas to go with the Chorizo. So it was Naan with a good slathering of butter which made it a dinner to remember. For those of you who want to skip the piggy goodness, just substitute the chorizo with some mutton or chicken keema and temper it with some chilly powder.So give the calorie count a miss and give it a try !
CHORIZO POTATO PEPPER PICCADILLO:
Ingredients:
Chorizo: 8oz pack(I used the Mexican variety, which is basically ground meat with spices)
Potato:2 : Peeled and cut into thick rounds
Canola Oil/ Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 4-5 tbsp
Salt: to taste
Jalapenos or Normal Green Chilly: 2: finely chopped
Onion: 1 large: sliced
Bell Pepper: 1 large: cut into strips
Chicken stock: 1 cup
Cilantro: 1/4 cup: chopped
Procedure:
Heat oil in pan and shallow fry the potatoes until they start to caramelise around the edges. Keep aside.
Toss the onions, chillies, bell pepper and chorizo in the pan, and cook on medium heat till the veggies soften.
Keep stirring infrequently.
Add the chicken stock and season it with salt. The packaged chorizo already has some salt in it, so use salt with caution. Mix well. Increase the heat up a notch. Cook uncovered till the stock is reduced to around half.
Then add the cooked potatoes in it , and mix well. Continue to cook uncovered, till the liquid has dried up a bit more.
Finally add the chopped cilantro.
Mix well. Cook till you see the oil of the chorizo separating and the stock has almost dried up.
Goes very well with any kind of bread, be it Tortillas, Rotis or even normal bread. I usually serve with hot naan glazed with butter.
Bon appetit.
It was my desire for something spicy, which led to the culinary replication and adaptation.When it comes to heat, if its not Indian, then its Mexican which satisfies my spicy taste buds and heat seeking soul.We did not have jalapenos at home, and we had also run out of olive oil. So the jalapenos in the recipe were replaced by the normal green chillies which we had picked up from the local Indian store. Yes, its the very same chilly which gives Maachher Jhol, the heat quotient and that sublime flavour.The absent olive oil, was replaced by good old canola oil. The taste did not even take a beating. We opted for some Indian bread rather than tacos or tortillas to go with the Chorizo. So it was Naan with a good slathering of butter which made it a dinner to remember. For those of you who want to skip the piggy goodness, just substitute the chorizo with some mutton or chicken keema and temper it with some chilly powder.So give the calorie count a miss and give it a try !
CHORIZO POTATO PEPPER PICCADILLO:
Ingredients:
Chorizo: 8oz pack(I used the Mexican variety, which is basically ground meat with spices)
Potato:2 : Peeled and cut into thick rounds
Canola Oil/ Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 4-5 tbsp
Salt: to taste
Jalapenos or Normal Green Chilly: 2: finely chopped
Onion: 1 large: sliced
Bell Pepper: 1 large: cut into strips
Chicken stock: 1 cup
Cilantro: 1/4 cup: chopped
Procedure:
Heat oil in pan and shallow fry the potatoes until they start to caramelise around the edges. Keep aside.
Toss the onions, chillies, bell pepper and chorizo in the pan, and cook on medium heat till the veggies soften.
Keep stirring infrequently.
Add the chicken stock and season it with salt. The packaged chorizo already has some salt in it, so use salt with caution. Mix well. Increase the heat up a notch. Cook uncovered till the stock is reduced to around half.
Then add the cooked potatoes in it , and mix well. Continue to cook uncovered, till the liquid has dried up a bit more.
Finally add the chopped cilantro.
Goes very well with any kind of bread, be it Tortillas, Rotis or even normal bread. I usually serve with hot naan glazed with butter.
Bon appetit.
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