kale, potato and chorizo soup

One of my resolutions for 2010 is to pay more attention to seasonality when cooking at home. Another is to try more recipes from our extensive cookbook collection. Last night I killed two birds by making this hearty soup from Nigel Slater‘s latest tome that features one of my favourite winter cabbages – Kale. All the bits in this rustic soup work so well together – smoky salty chorizo, softened by the mellow potatoes and tender kale leaves. A real winter pleaser, guaranteed to induce feelings of warmth and sighs of contentment with each mouthful.

Kale, Potato and Chorizo Soup
(from Nigel Slater’s Tender: a cook and his vegetable patch)
serves 4 as a starter, 2 as a main

1 large onion, finely sliced
3 medium potatoes
3-4 handfuls of kale leaves, shredded
200g (7oz) chorizo, roughly chopped
2-3 clove garlic, finely sliced
1 L (4 cups) water
2 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt

In a large, deep saucepan heat the oil over a medium flame and pop in the onions and garlic. Give it a good stir then turn the heat down to low and leave to cook gently for 3-4 minutes. In the meantime peel the potatoes, then cut into medium-sized pieces.

Once the onions are tender, add the potatoes to the pan. Stir to combine, then leave to cook for another 5 minutes. Add the water, bay leaves and season with salt and black pepper. Let the soup simmer for 20-25 minutes, until the potatoes are about to fall apart.

While the soup is cooking, fry the chorizo in a small sauté pan until crisp at the edges and the fat has been rendered. Remove from heat and keep warm.

With a fork or masher crush the potatoes in the soup – don’t worry if there are a few lumps here and there. Add the kale and simmer for another 3-4 minutes until tender.

Stir in the chorizo then serve immediately to whoever needs warming up.

    

~ by gourmettraveller on January 6, 2010.