Chouriço Pâté Pâté de Chouriço
This delicate blend of chouriço, sweet red pepper, and plump olives captures the essence of Portuguese food. Easy to make, this spread is a wonderful appetizer or delicious snack. Any Portuguese sausage can be substituted for chouriço. Serve with piri-piri sauce on thin slices of cornbread with extra black olives on the side.
Makes 4 to 6 servings 8 oz (226 g) chouriço 1 red bell pepper 1 tbsp (15 mL) Madeira or port 2 tsp (10 mL) olive oil 2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped onion 1 small clove garlic, minced 10 black olives, pitted and roughly chopped Fine salt and coarsely ground black pepper, to taste Pitted black olives, for garnish
In a small saucepan, cover the chouriço with water; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the chouriço is pink. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle. Using a sharp knife, remove the skin and slice the chouriço into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces. Remove and discard any fat. Set aside.
Core the pepper, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds. Place the pepper on a baking sheet skin side up. Broil about 4 inches (10 cm) from the heat until the skin is blackened, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a paper bag, seal, and set aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, peel.
In a blender or food processor, process the prepared chouriço just until the consistency of fine ground beef. Add the roasted pepper and Madeira and process with on/off pulses just until blended (be careful not to overprocess). Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
In a small skillet, heat the oil over medium heat; cook the onion and garlic for 2 to 3 minutes, until transparent. Transfer the onion and garlic with the cooking oil to the sausage mixture, add the olives, and mix with a wooden spoon until well blended. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Pack into a small crock or individual ramekins.
Garnish with olives (an olive per ramekin). Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.