In an effort to make side dishes more interesting, and inspired by seeing a chef sautéing potatoes to go with pork chops, we came up with sautéed potatoes with red pepper and chorizo. A simple, effective and very tasty side that works well with a variety of mains … and breakfast.

Equipment

• Sharp knife
• Chopping board
• Roasting tray
• Sauté pan (or frying pan)
• Garlic press (optional)
• Spatula

Ingredients

I used Maris Piper potatoes to make this side dish. I tried red potatoes but found that they were a little too waxy.

• 1 kg potatoes
• 2 red pepper
• 1 tbsp garlic (preferably smoked)
• 15g butter
• 2 tbsp duck fat
• 2 tsp salt
• Fresh thyme
• 250g chorizo
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Pre-heat an oven to 200°C/400°F, adding the roasting tray to warm up. Chop potatoes, chorizo and red peppers into bite-sized pieces. Crush the garlic.
2. When the oven is at temperature, remove the roasting tray. Carefully add duck fat to the roasting tray, then add the potatoes pieces, gently swirling them around. Sprinkle with salt, return roasting tray to oven for 35 mins.
3. Add red pepper chunks to the roasting tray, mix them in with potatoes. Roast for a further for 25 mins, then remove the tray from the oven.
4. Heat up olive oil over medium heat in a sauté pan, add the thyme leaves and garlic. Stir for 1-2 mins, lightly crushing the ingredients with a spatula to release the aromatics.
5. Add the potato and red pepper pieces to the pan, cook for a further 3-4 mins until the potato pieces are nicely browned all over.
6. Add the chorizo pieces and cook for 2-3 mins, until the chorizo is cooked through.
7. Serve with the rest of the meal, garnish with some chopped fresh thyme.

Hints, Tips and Pictures

1. The chorizo might sweat down, try cutting it a bit bigger for the first attempt and see what happens.
2. Romano peppers can be used instead of red peppers. They have a slightly reserved flavour, lacking the freshness and vibrancy of red peppers. However, when pairing with a chicken dish they seem to work better.