Mexican chorizo is a very popular sausage made with minced pork seasoned with different spices and chilies.
Unlike Spanish chorizo, Mexican chorizo is not kept for long periods of time; it has a soft and smooth texture; it is not consumed in slices and must be cooked before being consumed.
In Mexico there is a great variety of chorizos, the styles of the preparations usually vary in the different regions of the country. Chorizo can change in size, color, and flavor with the use of different chilies, spices, herbs, seeds, and other ingredients.
Toluca is known as the Mexican capital of chorizo, where its red Toluqueño chorizo stands out, as well as its green chorizo. It was in the Valley of Toluca where the history of chorizo began. Hernán Cortés introduced the first pigs to that area to raise them and produce chorizo.
According to the gastronomic dictionary Larousse cuisine, the red Toluqueño chorizo is usually made with a mixture of pork meat with some fat and with a preparation made with ancho chili, guajillo chili, coriander seeds, black pepper, cloves, vinegar, paprika, garlic, nutmeg and ginger; Pasilla chili, allspice, oregano, cumin, allspice, cinnamon and nitro salt are also added as a preservative.
Recipe to prepare fresh Mexican chorizo
Ingredients:
1 kilo of ground pork meat
2 tablespoons of table salt
6 ancho chili peppers
8 guajillo chili peppers
1 cup of white or apple vinegar
3 tablespoons ground paprika
6 minced garlic cloves
2 chopped bay leaves
½ teaspoon coriander seeds
⅓ tablespoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon of marjoram
½ teaspoon of thyme
6 cloves
½ teaspoon ground allspice
Chorizo or hemp string
2 meters from dry casing for stuffing
Preparation:
1. Soak the chiles in a bowl of hot water for 30 minutes. The peppers must be clean, open, without stems and without seeds.
2. Grind the herbs and spices in a mortar.
3. Blend the chiles (without the water), the garlic cloves and the vinegar.
4. Place meat and fat in large bowl; add mixture of ground herbs and spices; stir and add the puree integrating the ingredients.
5. Put the meat in a glass container. Close container and refrigerate for one day.
6. Stir the mixture a bit and wrap it into small packets or stuff it into casings.
To use the casings, they must be soaked in hot water for one hour until soft and pliable; then wash them by running warm water over them. Make a knot at one end of the casing and use a funnel to push the meat in little by little to prevent it from breaking.
Try not to leave any air bubbles. If you notice any bubbles, prick with the needle and press around the hole to remove the air, accommodating the meat. Knot the gut every 10 or 15 cm with the thread hemp.
7. To mature the chorizo, it is necessary to hang it for two days in a cool and dry place.
With the Mexican chorizo you can prepare a wide variety of recipes, such as potatoes with chorizo, bean tacos with chorizo, chilaquiles with egg and chorizo, empanadas, enfrijoladas, sopes, gorditas, tortas and pambazos.
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