Chef Isabel
Cigrons a la Catalana
Cigrons a la Catalana are Catalonia's chickpeas cooked in a dark sofregit, loosened with their own broth, then thickened with almond-garlic picada while pine nuts and raisins give the sweet Catalan note.
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Lentejas con Chorizo Castellanas
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Lentejas con chorizo are Castilian spoon food: small pardina lentils, smoky chorizo, vegetables, and a slow sofrito cooked until sweet before the pot does the rest.
Soups & Stews
Spanish
Weeknight
Comfort Food
Batch Cooking
15 min
Active Time
1 hr cook•1 hr 15 min total
Yield6 servings
Lentejas con chorizo are Castilian, the everyday pot from the dry middle of Spain where small lentils, cured pork, and vegetables make a whole meal without ceremony. This is cocina de cuchara, spoon food: thick enough to satisfy, loose enough to eat from a bowl, and better the next day if you had the sense to make extra.
The method that decides it is the sofrito, the slow onion base. Cook the onion, carrot, pepper, and garlic low until the onion goes dark gold and sweet before the lentils ever go in. Rush that and the stew tastes thin, no matter how good the chorizo is. Add the pimentón off the heat so it blooms without scorching, then the pardina lentils and water.
Pardina lentils are the right ones here because they cook from dry in under an hour and keep their shape. If you can't find them, use small brown or green lentils, not red lentils, which collapse into a puree. No hace falta haber pisado España. You need good Spanish chorizo, patience with the sofrito, and salt only near the end so the skins soften before they season.
My Margin has the same note beside every lentil pot: don't bully it. Let it murmur, taste it when the lentils are nearly tender, then salt. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.
Lentejas con chorizo belong to Castilian home cooking, especially the lentil lands of La Armuña and Tierra de Campos, where small brown lentils became a dependable cold-weather staple. The chorizo comes from the cured household larder, seasoned with pimentón and used more as flavoring than as a large piece of meat. It is one of Spain's plainest pot dishes, shaped by thrift, dry fields, and the need for food that could feed a table and still be better the next day.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
pardina lentils
Quantity
350g
picked over and rinsed
Spanish cooking chorizo
Quantity
200g
cut into thick coins
onion
Quantity
1 large
finely chopped
carrot
Quantity
1 medium
diced
green Italian frying pepper or small green bell pepper
Quantity
1
diced
garlic
Quantity
3 cloves
finely chopped
ripe tomato or canned crushed tomato
Quantity
1 medium or 150g
grated
olive oil
Quantity
3 tablespoons
sweet pimentón de la Vera
Quantity
1 teaspoon
bay leaf
Quantity
1
waxy potato
Quantity
1 medium
peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
water
Quantity
1.4 litres, plus more as needed
fine salt
Quantity
1 1/2 teaspoons, plus more to taste
added near the end
vinagre de Jerez (optional)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
to finish
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| pardina lentilspicked over and rinsed | 350g |
| Spanish cooking chorizocut into thick coins | 200g |
| onionfinely chopped | 1 large |
| carrotdiced | 1 medium |
| green Italian frying pepper or small green bell pepperdiced | 1 |
| garlicfinely chopped | 3 cloves |
| ripe tomato or canned crushed tomatograted | 1 medium or 150g |
| olive oil | 3 tablespoons |
| sweet pimentón de la Vera | 1 teaspoon |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| waxy potatopeeled and cut into 2cm chunks | 1 medium |
| water | 1.4 litres, plus more as needed |
| fine saltadded near the end | 1 1/2 teaspoons, plus more to taste |
| vinagre de Jerez (optional)to finish | 1 tablespoon |
Equipment Needed
- •Heavy 4 to 5 litre pot or olla
- •Wooden spoon
- •Box grater for the tomato
Instructions
- 1
Sort the lentils
Pick over the lentils, rinse them well, and set them aside. Pardina lentils do not need soaking; that is why this pot belongs on a weeknight as much as on a cold Sunday.
- 2
Cook the sofrito
Warm the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, carrot, pepper, and a pinch of the measured salt, then cook slowly for 15 to 18 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is dark gold and soft. Add the garlic and cook 2 minutes more. This slow sofrito is where the sweetness comes from; don't rush it.
If the vegetables start catching before they soften, lower the heat and add a spoonful of water. You want sweetness, not browned edges. - 3
Bloom the pimentón
Stir in the grated tomato and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the oil shows at the edges and the tomato has thickened. Take the pot off the heat, stir in the pimentón, and let it smell warm and smoky for a few seconds. Off the heat matters; scorched pimentón turns bitter and spoils the whole pot.
- 4
Add lentils and chorizo
Add the rinsed lentils, chorizo, bay leaf, potato, and 1.4 litres water. Bring it just to a boil, skim any foam, then lower the heat until the surface murmurs quietly. Cover partly and cook for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring gently once or twice, until the lentils are tender but still whole.
- 5
Salt near the end
When the lentils are almost tender, add the remaining salt and simmer 10 minutes more. Salt early and the skins can toughen before the insides soften; salt now and the whole pot seasons properly. If the stew is too thick, add a little hot water. If it is too loose, simmer uncovered until it sits thickly on the spoon.
- 6
Rest and serve
Turn off the heat and let the lentils rest 10 minutes. Taste for salt, remove the bay leaf, and add the sherry vinegar if the pot needs brightness. Serve with a few coins of chorizo in each bowl and bread nearby for the broth.
Chef Tips
- •Buy pardina lentils if you can. They are small, brown-green, and hold their shape without soaking. Small green or brown lentils work if that is what your market has; red lentils do not, unless you want soup, and that is another thing.
- •Use Spanish cooking chorizo, not the hard slicing chorizo meant for a board. If you can only find cured chorizo, use it, but cut it thick and expect a firmer bite and a little less fat in the broth.
- •This stew is better the next day. The lentils drink the broth overnight, so loosen leftovers with water and reheat gently. Don't add more stock unless you want the seasoning to go wandering.
Advance Preparation
- •The vegetables can be chopped up to 1 day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
- •The whole stew can be cooked 1 to 2 days ahead; cool it quickly, refrigerate, and reheat gently with a splash of water.
- •Leftovers freeze well for up to 3 months, though the potato softens. If freezing on purpose, leave the potato out or accept the softer texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 380g)
Calories
460 calories
Total Fat
20 g
Saturated Fat
6 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
14 g
Cholesterol
30 mg
Sodium
1050 mg
Total Carbohydrates
48 g
Dietary Fiber
9 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
23 g
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