POROTOS CON RIENDAS (BEANS with PASTA)

The third and final (for now) installment in the great Chorizo trilogy. Its been a lot of fun guys and three lovely, hearty, slightly fatty meals were made and enjoyed by all. But its now time to cease buying those Spanish sausage links (once again, for now) and eat some healthy meats / meals. But first, a story.

My dad, Santiago, was born in Chile many moons ago. So many moons ago in fact that he does not know his actual birthday. He claims that he has never had a birth certificate and was told by this mother that his birthday is most likely July 16 1954. Since this confirmation we have celebrated July 16^th as the birth of my family, Jim, James or traditionally named Santiago, after the city he was born in. My dad has retained some of his Chilean roots, these being a love for spicy foods, fluent in the language of Spanish and dark olive skin. What he hasn’t held onto is the Chilean cuisine. I doubt he could name one authentic Chilean dish if I asked him. As I reading the Feast July edition, the very last page featured a Chilean born man who revealed his mother’s recipe for Porotos Con Riendas or Beans with Pasta. Apparently this dish is a very famous Chilean bean soup. I have altered it somewhat, such as using sweet potato instead of pumpkin and turning it into a pasta dish not a soup, however it turned out beautifully  and my father and brother inhaled it.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil 
• 2 chorizo sausages (around 340g), finely sliced
• 500g sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 3cm pieces 
• 800g canned red kidney beans, drained
• 500g gluten-free pasta 
• 500ml (2 cups) vegetable stock 

COOKING 

1. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat and add coconut oil, swirling to coat pan. Add onion, garlic and chorizo to the pan and stir frequently, for around 3 minutes or until onion is soft. Add the sweet potato pieces and vegetable stock to just cover the potato. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, covered. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the sweet potato is just tender. 

2. Meanwhile, bring another large saucepan of water to the boil with a pinch of salt in it. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes or until the pasta is tender or just al dente (so the pasta is firm but not hard). Drain well with cold water. 

3. When sweet potato is tender, add the red kidney beans to the saucepan. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beans are cooked through and stock is absorbed. 

4. Place cooked pasta in a large serving bowl and add sweet potato, chorizo & bean mixture. Mix well to combine all ingredients. 

Serve warm. 

Serves / 6 - 8

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 25 minutes 

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