CHEF and blogger Paul James writes for our paper.
As my son gets ready to leave for university he won’t get much time to cook meals he’s used to having with all of his studying he has to do.
Students do get a raw deal sometimes with being labelled lazy etc….but what people forget is the amount of study and pressure that is put on young shoulders to achieve their career ambitions in life and – in my son’s case – to become a paramedic.
So this recipe is a simple one pan dish that still packs massive flavours in a rich a slightly spicy sauce. Perfect for impressing his university mates.
My lad and I have enjoyed many trips to the Mediterranean and I wanted to try and make something that was both economical and also bring back some memories of our travels together.
The nduja is a spicy paste made from cured pork and peppers from the Italian region of Calabria.
Adding olives to the dish also gives it a touch of Greece thrown in.
Even though this would be a perfect student dish, let’s not forget the rest of us – so go out grab the ingredients and make this truly delicious one pot dish.
Remember it’s not just the students that love to save time on the washing up.
Visit recipesfrommytravels.com for more of Paul’s recipes and his blog.
Spaghetti with Chorizo, Fennel and Nduja Sauce
Ingredients
200g fresh spaghetti (but you can use dried if you prefer)
1 garlic clove very thinly sliced
½ fennel very thinly sliced
75g nduja paste
100g tomatoes chopped into chunks
75g black olives , pitted and sliced very finely
2tsp tomato purée
3tbsp olive oil , plus a drizzle
50g of finely sliced chorizo
Parmigiana plus extra to serve
handful basil, torn
Salt and black pepper
Method
1. Put all the ingredients except the parmigiana, basil and spaghetti in a deep frying pan and season well with plenty of black pepper.
2. Fry gently for five minutes
3. Pour over 800ml kettle-hot water and bring to a simmer, add the spaghetti.
4. Cook the pasta as instructed on the packet. Fresh pasta, usually 5-6 minutes, dried approximately 10-12 minutes.
5. Gently swirl the spaghetti through the liquid.
6. Add a splash more hot water if the sauce is too thick or does not cover the pasta while it cooks.
7. Turn up the heat for 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened
8. Stir through the parmigiana and basil, and serve with a drizzle of olive oil and more parmigiana on top.