Michelle’s Kitchen in Toronto: South American-Inspired Sausage and Vegetable Ragout

My cravings for meat continue with this dish inspired by the wonderful Columbian chorizo I bought at Segovia Meat Market (218 Augusta Avenue, Toronto, ON M5T 2L6
(416) 593-9904) in Kensington Market that’s been hanging out in my freezer for a few weeks. The ingredient list is long, but well worth the effort, another one of my food experiments gone right!

South American-Inspired Sausage and Vegetable Ragout

2 tsp olive oil

¼ red bell pepper sliced into short strips (or use a half if you don’t like the green peppers)

¼ green bell pepper sliced into short strips

1-2 carrots peeled and diced (use two if they are small)

1 sausage link diced (use chorizo or another Latin/Spanish-inspired sausage with lots of flavour)

3 stems green onion, chopped fine (this is again leftovers from the great Fish Fragrant Eggplants, but you could dice up half an onion and simply toss in the pan with the carrots if you prefer)

¼ c chicken broth

1 bay leaf

½ tsp coriander powder

¼ tsp cumin

¼ tsp garlic powder

1/8 – ¼ tsp chipotle powder

1/8 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp taco sauce (I used Old El Paso’s Mild version)

Heat the oil in the pan at a medium heat. As I don’t have the greatest pan in the world, I also used some cooking spray to help the oil. Once hot, add the carrots, bay leaf, and a little salt to bring out the flavour; sauté. If you are using diced onion instead of the green onions, add them at this point. Sauté until they start to lose their rawness and add the peppers. Sauté a few minutes and add the other seasonings while this is happening and stir. After a minute or two, add the diced sausage. Cook until it is mostly cooked and add taco sauce; stir. Add the chicken broth and scrap the flavour bits from the bottom of the pan. This creates a nice sauce and cooks the sausage. Serve with some nice basmati rice and enjoy!

I didn’t have garlic in the house today so I used the powder, however if you are using fresh and want to omit the powder, add the garlic about a minute before you add the taco sauce. This is a great dish to make just because, or to help clean out your fridge. I had some cooked leftover rice from a curry I made so I just stirred that right in at the end to warm it!