Homemade: Rioja-style potatoes with Spanish chorizo stew

This is a traditional dish from the Northern Spanish region of La Rioja, where the famous wine hails from.

It is a very modest dish that doesn’t require many culinary techniques, but it’s sooo tasty. I usually make it in Winter when it’s cold outside and I’m in need of some comfort food.

You can have this dish as a main, on its own, you can have it as a starter, or as a side too. Whatever the format, it’s a different and very tasty option.

Sometimes I also serve it in little casseroles to give it that Spanish rustic style!

Ready in: 1 hour

Serves: 4

Level: Medium

Ingredients:

4 big potatoes
100 g Spanish sweet chorizo (you can find it here)
1 big onion
6 garlic cloves
1 red pepper
1 tsp of sweet paprika (or make it fresh yourself)
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp of olive oil
A pinch of freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of salt
1 litre of water

Method:

Chop the chorizo and fry it in a large pan on a medium heat for 2 minutes till it begins to release its oil, then set aside leaving the oil residue in the pan (it will give our dish a tremendous flavour).
Thinly slice the onion and the garlic.
Without cleaning the pan, add some olive oil and gently fry the onion and garlic for 10 minutes until soft, adding a pinch of salt (it’s important to add the salt to the onion in this moment, it will help it release its juices and stop them from burning).
Slice the red pepper and add to the pan, fry on a low heat for 20 minutes until it’s soft and well done. Keep stirring to avoid burning!
Peel, wash and chop the potatoes into 2 cm pieces and add to the pan. Stir and cook for 5 minutes on a medium heat.
Then add 1 tsp of sweet smoked paprika and stir.
Add the chorizo back into the pan, and add the two bay leaves and a generous pinch of ground black pepper.
Add 1 litre of water to the pan, bring to the boil. Let it simmer on a low heat for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked. You have to achieve a thick sauce, not too liquid. You will see that the onion is gone, it has dissolved into the sauce completely!
Just slice some rustic bread on the side and it’s ready to go.