Basque Sausage Food

BASQUE CHORIZO

Steps:

• Put sausage grinding tool, large and medium cutting plates, grinder knife, and meat hopper in the freezer.
• Cut pork shoulder into approximately 1-in. cubes and put in a very large bowl. Add wine and all seasonings to pork shoulder and toss to coat thoroughly, then spread on 2 rimmed baking sheets. Cut fat into 1-in. cubes and put in a medium bowl. Freeze both shoulder and fat until semifrozen, about 2 hours. (Keep meat semifrozen for duration of recipe; otherwise it won't grind easily).
• Assemble grinder and attach to stand mixer following manufacturer's instructions, making sure the chilled grinding tool is fully inserted (you have to twist it in). Grind fat through large grinding plate, a few chunks at a time, into a medium stainless steel bowl. Fat should fall crisply and cleanly out of the grinder; if it smears, it's too warm (return fat to freezer).
• Transfer half of pork shoulder to a large bowl; keep remaining half of shoulder frozen. Grind pork through large grinding plate, a few chunks at a time, back onto its baking sheet and return to freezer. Change to medium plate and grind remaining half of pork onto another baking sheet or large bowl.
• Mix both grinds of pork together with fat, using two large forks and breaking up any clumps of fat.
• Form a small patty from meat and fry in olive oil in a small pan over medium heat to test seasonings. Taste and adjust salt and spices accordingly. If you would like the flavors to mellow, cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill 24 hours before continuing; for a spicier sausage, proceed with the recipe.
• Continue forming patties, or make sausages by stuffing meat into casings. To stuff meat into casings, put grinding mechanism, meat hopper, and ground meat back in freezer. Flush casings with warm water using a small funnel inserted in one end of casing (do this in a clean sink). Soak casings in warm water at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
• Follow manufacturer's instructions for assembling stuffer and attaching to mixer, using the medium-size horn and greasing it with butter or lard. Push casings all the way onto the horn in one long piece, as though you were putting on a stocking. Knot the end of the casing. Take out 1/4 of meat from freezer and keep rest in freezer as you work (if it warms up, it will gum up the machine and won't have as nice a texture when cooked).
• Guide meat into casings so it packs tightly and firmly and let finished sausages coil into a bowl. As each reaches the length you like--about 6 to 8 inches and slim is standard for this chorizo--twist it into an individual sausage link or tie off with kitchen twine. Prick any air holes with a sharp toothpick.
• Freeze sausages or patties at this point, or cook. For sausages: Grill over indirect 300° heat or pan-cook over medium heat until they're plump, browned, and shiny (an instant-read thermometer inserted lengthwise reads 145°). For patties: Grill or pan-cook until crisp-edged and browned.
• * A good one-stop shopping source for the paprikas in this recipe is spanishtable.com. Pre-order back fat and hog casings from a butcher shop.
• Fresh chorizo keeps, chilled, up to 3 days; frozen in 2 layers of resealable plastic bags, up to 3 months. Cooked chorizo keeps 1 week; frozen, up to 5 months.
• Note: Nutritional analysis is per sausage.

BASQUE POTATO SOUP

Steps:

• Cook the sausage and onion in a large Dutch oven for 5 minutes, stirring frequently; drain well. Add the tomatoes, beef stock, bay leaf, and thyme.
• Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Stir in the potatoes, celery, carrots, Burgundy, and celery leaves. Simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the cabbage, and simmer an additional 20 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. (Depending on the sausage you choose, you may not need much salt). Enjoy!

CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE BASQUE

Steps:

• Sauté the zucchini in the 2 tablespoons of hot olive oil in large skillet over high heat for 3 minutes or until browned. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper; stir well. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Reduce the heat to medium high. Add the sausage and cumin to the skillet; cook 8 minutes or until browned and no longer pink. Drain, reserving 1 tablespoon of drippings in skillet. Cut sausage into ¾-inch pieces, set aside.
• Add butter and next 3 ingredients to skillet; cook stirring often, until the onions are tender and mushroom liquid evaporates. Remove the vegetables from the skillet with slotted spoon.
• Heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil in same skillet over medium high heat.
• Dredge the chicken in the flour. Cook the chicken in hot oil for 8 minutes or until done turning once. Stir in the vermouth, the roasted red peppers, reserved sliced sausage, reserves vegetables, parsley, bay leaves, basil, and thyme. Bring to boil and simmer uncovered 5 minutes; discard bay leaf and serve.