This was dinner last night. It worked out well especially for a “found this in the freezer” dinner. Note: I did not measure out the ingredients exactly. Somethings are pretty easy – a can of X is a can of X. Other things were by eye and taste.

Ingredients

2 Chorizo Sausages – cut into 1/4 lengthwise then chopped to 1/4 inch long pieces
2 small onions diced (about 1 cup diced onion)
1/2 red bell pepper diced
4 small carrots peeled and sliced (about 1 cup)
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 Tbls butter
3 Cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 14oz Can of Hominy – drained and rinsed
1 14oz Can Petite Diced Tomatoes – drained (save the juice for something else)
1 Tbls Chili Powder
1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 Tbls Buffalo Chipotle Hot Sauce (the best, most useful stuff)
2 tsp Dried Mexican Oregano
2 Cups cooked black beans (we had made these the day before), drained
1 tsp Sugar
Salt and Pepper

Garnish: Avocado and Lime

1. Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Cook until the butter stops foaming
2. Add the onions, bell pepper and carrot and a pinch of kosher salt. Cook, stirring often, until the vegis are soft. (about 5 minutes)
3. Add the chorizo and cook until the fat starts to render out of the sausage (about 5 minutes)
4. Add the garlic, chili powder and oregano and cook until fragrant (about a minute)
5. Add the broth and bring to a boil
6. Add the hominy, tomatoes and beans and stir to combine
7. Add the hot sauce and cayenne and taste for spiciness. Adjust these for the level of heat and smokiness that you want
8. Add the sugar. Note: this won’t make it sweet it will just balance out the smokey flavors.
9. Simmer partially covered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Near the end of the cooking time, add a healthy grind of black pepper and test for salt.
11. Finish in the bowl with chopped avocado and a squeeze of lime.

Technorati Tags: Recipe, Soup