SPICY CHORIZO & LENTIL STEW

4 December, 2023 Isaac Taylor

Another one-pot wonder! This dish is great with some buttery, crusty bread — we usually have a big green salad/slaw with it too. We also love it on toasted Vogel’s with fried or poached eggs for brunch or weekend brekkie.

SERVES 6

2 tbsp canola oil
3 chorizo sausages, chopped into oval ‘rounds’ (‘cos it looks purty)
1 red onion, super finely diced
5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
fresh chilli of any variety — as much or as little as you like — finely chopped (or use dried chilli flakes)
thumbnail-sized knob of fresh ginger, finely diced
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cracked black pepper
Maldon sea salt flakes, to taste (we use about 3 generous pinches)
600g canned chopped tomato
1½ cups (375g) brown or puy lentils
3 cups water
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Lucky Taco Chilli Salt (optional)
Lucky Taco Chipotle Hot Sauce (optional)
½ cup plain unsweetened yoghurt

Note

You can also heat leftovers in a pot; once hot, make two divots in the stew and crack an egg into each. Put the lid back on. Make sure the heat is at medium, and let the eggs bake for about 4–5 mins. If you want your eggs less runny, leave it longer, but watch that the stew doesn’t catch and burn on the bottom.

Make sure you have ALL your ingredients prepped before you start. This makes for far less stressful cooking. Place a medium-sized cast-iron pot or saucepan (with well-fitting lid) over medium-high heat. Then add canola oil. Add sliced chorizo to hot pan and fry on both sides until golden brown. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Then tip in onion, garlic, chilli and ginger. Turn heat down to medium — you don’t want to burn your onions or garlic, otherwise the dish will taste bitter. Gently sauté the veges until they start to soften and the onion turns translucent.

Tip in all the dry ground spices, including pepper and salt. Keep stirring until fragrant.

Now you can chuck in the remaining ingredients except the chilli salt and hot sauce. Let it bubble for a few minutes on high heat, then give it a good stir. Turn down to a simmer. Put the lid on the pot and leave for about 45 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.

If you want, add a generous shake of chilli salt and a splash of hot sauce for a smoky, spicy kick!

TASTE. Adjust seasoning to suit your taste. Or add more water and keep cooking if you need to. You can’t really spoil this dish with overcooking.

Add a dollop of yoghurt on top of each serve to finish. Serve up garnished with your fave herbs — or keep nude! YUM!