fideos

I finally got to cook last night. Not just throw a quick soup or salad together, but really cook. It felt great to make something I was excited about, adiposity something I’ve never made before, something pretty darn tasty.

I seem to have a stock-pile of hot, Spanish chorizo in my fridge and it’s been finding its way into so many of my meals recently. I love how it infuses a dish with color and flavor. For this recipe, I sauteed it with chickpeas and added chicken stock and the thin Spanish noodles known as fideos. Something really interesting happened that I hadn’t intended — the broth became super thick and almost creamy and I couldn’t figure out how it had gotten that way without flour or cream. After thinking about it, I concluded that the little bit of water from the chickpeas thickened up as I sauteed them and the fideos released a good amount of starch as they simmered in the stock. The result was a thick orange sauce that I used to poach my shrimp.

I think I’ve found my new favorite meal in this dish. It has a really short prep and cook time and is impressive enough for guests. Oh yeah, and it’s a one-pot meal so the hub likes it too.