Throw-it-Together Tapas

Tonight is going to be a ‘throw it together dinner’ sort of night. In short, I need to curb my spending on food or this blog will be sure to bankrupt me. So, I had a rummage in the cupboards last night to see what tasty delights I could make without yet another trip to the shops. The king of all throw together meals in my opinion is Tapas.

I had a sizeable chunk of Chorizo in the fridge which I have been marinating in wine over night and am defrosting some raw prawns to be cooked in a garlicky sauce would should be great with some fresh bread to mop up the juices (meaning I will have to break my rule and go buy some bread but I think I can allow myself that). So the menu tonight: Chorizo in red wine, garlicky prawns, bread, meats and cheese and a nice big salad. With a nice bottle of red wine I reckon we’ll be most content. That said give me red wine with anything and I’ll be grinning inanely before too long.


Chorizo in red wine (2 people as part of tapas platter)

200g Chorizo cut into inch long chunks
Enough red wine to cover (I’m using Spanish wine as it seems in-keeping with the theme, maybe that’s not really necessary)
1 Garlic clove, crushed

Pop chorizo in a bowl with the garlic and pour on your wine until the sausage is covered, season, pop in fridge and leave for at least 12 hours. Then pour yourself a glass of wine for a job well done.

When ready to cook strain (reserving the wine) then fry for about 5 minutes, turning regularly, in a frying pan (no need for oil, chorizo is plenty fatty enough). Then pour over the wine mixture and quickly heat through, when hot, serve with bread.


Garlicky Prawns (2 people as part of tapas platter)

300g Raw tiger prawns, defrosted if frozen
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
Juice of half a lemon
Parsley and lemon wedge to serve

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok to medium-high temperature, toss in the garlic and chilli and cook for a minute, until the garlic is cooked but not coloured. Chuck in your prawns and cook for 4 minutes on a high temperature until pink and cooked through, then throw in your lemon juice. Serve with a sprinkling of fresh parsley and a lemon wedge. If you want more sauce I would chuck in some white wine towards the end of cooking, but maybe I’m just in a wine-y sort of mood today.