Chorizo Chickpea Summer Stew Recipes

CHORIZO AND CHICKPEA STEW

Steps:

• If ever there were justification for cupboard love, this would be it: a full-on feast thrown together to enormous effect, simply with ingredients that you can more or less keep on permanent standby. And, like so many of these recipes, it's pretty well instant. After all, if you haven't got time to shop, it's hardly likely you'll be able to spend many hours at the stove.
• I am, anyway, a huge fan of bulgar wheat - think couscous, only more robust - but cooked like this, with some strands of pasta tossed in hot oil first, it really has something extra. I was taught to do this, just chatting stoveside, by an Egyptian friend when I was in my twenties, and I've never seen any reason to change the drill. He, actually, didn't use torn-up spaghettini but, rather, lokshen, which are the short lengths of vermicelli customarily found in echt chicken soup.
• This is a tradition about as far away from the chorizo-cooking culture as you could get, but the chickpea-studded, tomatoey and paprika-hot stew goes extremely well with the nubbly grain. I keep a stock of cherry tomatoes in sauce in the cupboard, but regular canned tomatoes could be substituted easily enough.
• Warm the olive oil in a thick-bottomed saucepan on a medium heat.
• Fry the pasta bits in the oil for a minute, stirring, until they look like slightly scorched straws. Then add the bulgar wheat and stir for another minute or two.
• Stir in the cinnamon and the salt, and then pour the water into the pan. Add the bay leaves, and bring to a boil, then turn down to the lowest heat, add a lid, and leave for 15 minutes, until all the water has been absorbed.
• Put another thick-bottomed saucepan on a medium heat, add the chorizo pieces and fry until the orange oil runs out. Then add the sherry and let it bubble away. Add the apricots (if using), along with the chickpeas (or beans) and canned tomatoes, and 3/4 fill each empty tomato can with water and swish it out into the pan. Put on a high heat to bubble for about 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
• Serve with the bulgar wheat and, if there's any to hand, some chopped cilantro.

CHORIZO, ORZO & SWEETCORN SUMMER STEW

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a deep frying pan and fry the white parts of the spring onions, the peppers and chorizo for 8 mins, until the peppers are soft and the chorizo is just golden.
• Stir in the garlic, orzo, paprika, sweetcorn and tomato, and fry for 2-3 mins more. Pour in the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for 8-10 mins, stirring often, until the orzo is tender. Stir in the parsley, the green parts of the spring onions, and the lemon juice and zest.

CHICKPEA STEW WITH SPINACH AND CHORIZO

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, cover the chickpeas with 2 inches of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until tender, about 2 hours; add more water as necessary to maintain the level. Drain; reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.
• In a medium enameled cast-iron casserole, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic, onion, rosemary and bay leaf and cook over moderate heat until the onion is softened, about 7 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook over moderately high heat until sizzling, about 4 minutes.
• Add the sliced chorizo, the cooked chickpeas and their reserved cup of cooking water and the cup of reserved tomato juices and bring the chickpea to a simmer. Stir in half of the spinach and cook until it is wilted, then stir in the remaining half of the spinach. Simmer the chickpea stew over moderately low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

CHORIZO & CHICKPEA STEW

Steps:

• In a frying pan, fry the chorizo, onion and garlic for 5 mins or until the chorizo is browning on the outside. Drain the excess oil, then stir in the spices.
• Pour in the tomatoes, lemon juice, chickpeas and seasoning. Bubble for 5 mins more to thicken slightly, then sprinkle over the parsley. Serve with toasted sourdough.

CHORIZO & CHICKPEA SUMMER STEW

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the garlic, thyme and smoked paprika, and stir for a few minutes, then tip in the chorizo and stir for another couple of minutes until its oil is released. Splash in the sherry vinegar and let it bubble for a minute or so.
• Add the tomatoes, peppers, spinach and chickpeas along with 100ml water and a pinch of seasoning. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the tomatoes have softened and there is a thickened sauce, about 15 mins. Adjust the seasoning and finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with crusty bread.