Hosting a wine and tapas party in a true Spanish style is so fun and easy at home. Make Chorizo in Red Wine the showpiece for a truly fantastic Spanish feast!
For another tapa, add our Loaded Potato Skins with Chorizo and Bravas Sauce in place of the famous patatas bravas!
Spanish food is so much more than tapas, but what a great place to begin! A table spread with a range of tasty tapas is just so perfect whether hosting a few friends or just chilling with a movie.
They’ve become a regular feature in our house whenever we want something just a little bit different without putting in a lot of effort. As a rule they should be small bites that are easy to make but packed with flavour.
This dish of chorizo in red wine is just that. It’s so quick and easy to make but absolutely bursting with sweet, spicy, savoury flavours! No matter how often we make this dish, it’s always a huge hit!
Tapas party
I have to admit we are quite obsessed with everything Spanish here. It’s partially due to Spain’s amazing beauty but mostly because we spent some of the best times there as a family. The food immediately evokes fantastic memories.
Another reason I love a tapas meal for the summer is because it requires very little time around the hot stove! All you need is some sliced cured meat like Serrano ham, Spanish cousin of Italian prosciutto, cheese such as Manchego, a selection of olives, some crusty bread.
And of course you will need the star of the show…Chorizo in Red Wine. What?!!
Cooked chorizo
I love a chunk or slice of chorizo as much as the next person. But it’s when chorizo is cooked that it becomes a true revelation.
That’s because the heat transforms the texture of this robust Spanish sausage from tough and chewy to soft and juicy. It releases and enhances flavours like paprika to really make them pop!
Chorizo flavoured with smoky paprika barely needs anything else but wine is known to make almost everything better. All you really need to do is to slightly brown the chorizo pieces with garlic and rosemary.
Then hit it with a glass of deep red wine and a teaspoon of honey and let the sauce reduce. You’ll know its done when the sauce becomes thick and sticky. You won’t believe the transformation!! I used a bottle of French Bordeaux when making mine, but any red wine with deep flavour will do.
And here you have it, summer entertaining done easy and with a lot of style and flare! I hope our summer tapas tradition will become yours as well!
Recipe tips and tricks
- Be careful not to turn the heat up too high when frying the chorizo. They can burn quite easily.
- The sweet oil left over from cooking this recipe is amazing! Serve the chorizo with pieces of crusty bread to soak it up.
More Spanish recipes
- Padron Peppers (Traditional Spanish Tapas)
- Spanish Chicken in Bravas Sauce
- Easy Spanish Rice with Chicken and Shrimp
- Spanish Style Baked Chicken Thighs with Potatoes
Chorizo in Red Wine
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 rosemary sprigs
- 300 g/10 oz of cured chorizo sliced
- 250 ml/1 cup cup red wine
- 1 tsp honey
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and add sliced garlic, cook over medium heat for 1 minute, then add rosemary sprigs and cook for 1 minute longer. Add chorizo sliced into 2cm/1" thick rounds and fry until it releases red liquid for about 2 minutes.
- Pour wine all over the chorizo, add honey and cook until it's reduced in volume so the sauce just coats the chorizo. It will take about 5 minutes. Watch your chorizo closely to avoid burning.
