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Chorizo in Red Wine (Chorizo al Vino)

Spanish-style cooking chorizo turns a little red wine into a glossy, savory sauce for a warm tapas plate with toasted bread.

Spanish chorizo rounds glisten in red wine sauce beside toasted baguette slices and toothpicks.

Chorizo al vino is a relaxed tapas dish built around the flavorful fat released by Spanish-style cooking chorizo. A gentle reduction of dry red wine turns that fat into a sauce made for bread.

Start with Spanish cooking chorizo

Look for Spanish-style semi-cured chorizo that is meant to be cooked, rather than fresh Mexican chorizo. The firmer sausage keeps its shape in the skillet, so each round can be picked up with a toothpick and coated in sauce.

Let the sausage season the pan

A moderate, steady heat gives the chorizo time to warm and release its paprika-red fat without scorching the cut surfaces. Garlic goes in after the sausage has rendered, where it softens in the flavorful fat instead of burning against a dry pan.

Spanish chorizo rounds simmer with garlic and bay in red wine as the sauce reduces. — Chorizo rounds simmer gently with garlic and bay as red wine reduces in the skillet.

Reduce the wine to a glaze

The wine should bubble gently while it reduces, leaving enough moisture to coat the sausage rather than turning into a dry pan glaze. Scraping up the browned bits at the start carries their savory flavor into the sauce, and parsley stirred in off the heat keeps its aroma fresh.

Keep bread and toothpicks close

Transfer the chorizo with its sauce to a shallow warm dish and serve it as soon as it leaves the skillet. Toasted baguette soaks up the wine and sausage juices, while toothpicks make the rounds easy to share as a small plate.

Glossy wine sauce and parsley coat browned Spanish chorizo rounds in a close view. — Glossy red wine sauce clings to tender chorizo rounds finished with parsley.

Chorizo in Red Wine (Chorizo al Vino)

4 tapas servings

28 minutes total

Ingredients

• 12 oz Spanish-style semi-cured cooking chorizo, not fresh Mexican chorizo
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 3/4 cup dry red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 8 oz crusty baguette, cut into slices

Method

Prepare the chorizo and aromatics
Slice the Spanish-style semi-cured cooking chorizo into 1/2-inch rounds, thinly slice the garlic, and finely chop the parsley; keep each ingredient separate for quick cooking.
Look for: The chorizo rounds are evenly thick and the garlic and parsley are ready beside the stove.
Toast the baguette
Brush the 8 oz baguette slices lightly with the 1 tbsp olive oil and toast them in a wide skillet over medium heat, turning once until golden at the edges; set aside.
Look for: The bread is crisp at the edges with a little give in the center, ready to soak up sauce.
Render the chorizo
Use the same skillet over medium-low heat to cook the chorizo rounds for 4 minutes, turning once, until warmed through and lightly browned with red oil beginning to collect.
Look for: The slices are hot in the center and a small pool of paprika-red fat coats the skillet.
Soften the garlic
Stir the sliced garlic and black pepper into the rendered chorizo fat and cook briefly, stirring, until the garlic smells fragrant but has not browned.
Look for: The garlic is glossy and aromatic with no dark edges.
Simmer with red wine
Pour in the 3/4 cup dry red wine, add the bay leaf, and scrape up the browned bits; simmer gently for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chorizo is hot and the wine has reduced to a glossy sauce.
Look for: The sauce lightly coats the chorizo instead of pooling thinly across the skillet.
Finish the sauce
Remove and discard the bay leaf, then stir in the chopped parsley; take the skillet off the heat once the herbs are evenly distributed through the glossy sauce.
Look for: Bright parsley flecks cling to the chorizo and the sauce remains glossy.
Serve warm as tapas
Transfer the chorizo and all of its sauce to a warm shallow serving dish, set out toothpicks, and serve immediately with the toasted baguette for soaking up the wine sauce.
Look for: The chorizo is served warm with sauce in the dish and crisp bread within reach.