Mexican Style Pasta in Chipotle Sauce with Chorizo

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

If you are my friend, it is no secret that I love food. My family loves food, I love when food is with me and my family. I don’t consider myself a chef or a food stylist, but I do consider myself knowledgeable of good food, and good styles of food to eat. There are three cultural food groups that I will always gravitate towards, and that’s mexican, indian and anything within the asian culture (I use this as a cheat, because I know that the variation is vast, but it’s my blog, so I can do that.) Cooking this genre of food isn’t second nature to me, but I do dabble in creating Latin dishes from time to time and love to test out what I can. I was able to pair a Latin flair with a “traditional” American staple, with Chipotle peppers in Adobo Sauce from La Morena that I found in Pete’s Fresh Market here in Chicago. Pete’s is one of my favorite stores, and I LOVE that they just built one down the street from our current house, but with moving, I’m going to miss its close proximity. No worries as there is a Pete’s less than 5 miles away from our new home! 

Anytime I cook any Latin food, my family has several requests. It MUST contain avocado, it MUST have crema, and it HAS to have cheese. So why not pair all three of those and then sneak in a little spice with Chipotle Adobo sauce? Right. The great thing about this meal is that it still has all of those flavors and complexities that make it uniquely flavorful and authentic, yet almost every single one of the ingredients can be found in your local grocer. Pete’s Fresh Market happens to have a LARGE ethnic demographic, and it’s always my first stop whenever I’m in the mood for authentic taco’s, guacamole, tortas and sopes (which we’ll be making later this week.) It’s also where I can chat up shoppers and employees alike and ask for guidance when attempting a recipe for the first time. Nothing beats walking the aisle and looking at different ingredients that I could potentially use in meal planning for the future. I mean, look at all the variations of hot peppers and you can use! And this is just ONE aisle! 

Since it’s time to hunker down for the heavier meals, and I can turn my stove on without feeling like I’m going to drop into a puddle, this is SUCH a comfort type of meal that doesn’t take a comfort meal amount of time to make. While eating this, I didn’t feel like I was eating spaghetti in a meat sauce. It was an EXPERIENCE, and I’m not exaggerating. I had to pat my OWN self on the back, because it was just that good. I know you’re waiting for the recipe so here goes: 

 

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 lbs ripe Roma tomatoes(about 6 to 8 tomatoes)
1 medium clove garlic
1/2 cup tomato cooking liquid
1/2 cup medium white onion, coarsely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
3/4 tsp kosher or sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
8 oz fresh, uncooked Mexican chorizo, casings removed and coarsely chopped
1 tbsp safflower or corn oil
8 oz dried spaghetti, angel hair or fettuccine, broken into smaller pieces
2 cups chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 to 2 tbsp sauce from canned chipotles in adobo, plus 1 whole canned chipotle chile for more heat (optional)
6 oz queso fresco, crumbled
Mexican cream, as much as needed  
1 ripe avocado, halved, peeled, cut into slices

TO PREPARE
Place tomatoes and garlic in a medium saucepan. Add water to cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Simmer for about 10 minutes, until the tomatoes are thoroughly cooked, they look mushy and the skins have started to come off.

Transfer the tomatoes, 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and garlic to a blender along with the onion, salt and pepper. Let cool slightly and puree until smooth.

Cook the chorizo in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat for 5 to 6 minutes, until it has browned and crisped; use a wooden spoon or spatula to break it into smaller pieces as it cooks. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked chorizo to a bowl.

Add oil to the same skillet used to cook the chorizo, over medium-high heat. Add the spaghetti or fettuccine pieces and cook for a few minutes, stirring often, until the pasta changes color and starts to brown. Do not let it burn!!

Pour the tomato puree on the pasta. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce thickens and the color darkens to a deeper red. Add the chicken broth, bay leaves and adobo sauce, plus a whole chipotle chile in adobo, if desired.

Mix well, cook uncovered for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring often to keep the pasta from sticking, until the pasta is cooked through and the tomato sauce has thickened considerably. Discard the bay leaves.

Add the chorizo and stir to incorporate. Divide among individual plates; serve hot, topped with crumbled cheese, fresh cream and avocado slices.

 

For more inspiration, you can check out La Morena on Facebook . Happy Cooking!