The Chorizo Phenomenon

Merguez was the spicy and delicious sausage we ate, grilled, in Algeria in the nineteen sixties. Although you can buy this in England, much more common is chorizo, the Spanish sausage. Chorizo can be hot or mild, the distinctive flavour coming from smoked paprika. I had always known it as a cold meat, thinly sliced, but today's preferred chorizo is like an ordinary British sausage, sliced and fried.

I have noticed recently that not only I, in my casseroles, make liberal use of chorizo, but that chefs seem not to be able to avoid it, particularly when making starters. This morning on the cooking programme on BBC, someone suggested fried chicken livers with salad and chorizo. It is frequently served with scallops, but its use is spreading like mad. We shall see if it soon takes over the world as a cooking ingredient. I foresee chorizo salad, chorizo soup, chorizo stew (I claim this one) and maybe a rather disgusting chorizo ice cream. Not to mention numerous combinations of chorizo with everything else. I dread finding some in my Eton mess, though it may prove an interesting addition to the traditional English breakfast. Hmmm.