Wagon Wheel Skillet Dinner

I love skillet dinners. They are a terrific way to get a home-cooked meal on the table with minimal cleaning up required, tend to be quick and easy to make, and are always well received. This Wagon Wheel Skillet Dinner hits all three of those points with ease. Of course, you can also use any other short pasta shape, but these rotelle seemed perfect to the southwest theme. If you like a saucier texture, more like a chili mac, feel free to double the salsa, or add a cup of crushed tomatoes.

This recipe relies heavily on the fresh chorizo for its seasoning, but you can always add additional cumin, chipotle, ancho, and Mexican oregano if your sausage is very mild.

Wagon Wheel Skillet Dinner

Serves 4

300 grams fresh Mexican-style chorizo
200 grams short pasta, such as rotelle/wagon wheel shape
2 cloves garlic
2 jalapeño peppers
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
250 mL frozen corn kernels/niblets (about a cup)
250 mL prepared tomato-based salsa, heat level of your choice
3 tablespoons tomato paste
500 mL water or chicken broth/stock, plus extra water if needed
225 grams cooked black beans (eg. a 400 gram can, drained)
1 red bell pepper
Tabasco pepper sauce to taste
Shredded cheese of your choice, to finish
Cilantro and/or avocado to garnish, if you like

Set a large skillet to warm on the lowest burner setting while you prepare the ingredients. Remove the chorizo from its casing and chop roughly. Mince or crush the garlic and set aside. Remove seeds from jalapeños and finely chop. Measure the cumin. Measure out the corn and the salsa. Drain the black beans in a sieve, and rinse them well if using canned ones. Measure the tomato paste. It's a time-saver to heat the stock or water, but not essential.

Turn up the heat under the skillet, and let it come up to medium-high. Add the chopped, skinless chorizo, and fry it in its own fat, stirring periodically, until the meat starts to turn golden brown (about six to eight minutes). Add the minced/crushed garlic and stir through. Add the jalapeños and the cumin and stir through. Cook and stir for about a minute, and then add the frozen corn kernels, and stir them through, too. Give them about a minute on their own, and then add the prepared salsa and the tomato paste, and stir through. You can immediately add the pasta and the broth or water, and stir everything carefully together.

Bring the mixture up to almost boiling, then cover the pan and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook for about 10 - 15 minutes, stirring periodically, until the pasta is tender. The length of time is really going to depend on which pasta you are using, so test the pasta as needed. While the pasta cooks, dice the red bell pepper and grate the cheese.

When the pasta is almost tender, add the drained black beans and the diced bell pepper, and stir through. Bring the temperature back up to a simmer, and if it is looking too dry (it should be just slightly saucy) add extra water - maybe half a cup or so, as needed, to get a pleasingly consistency. Reduce the heat again, and simmer for another five minutes to heat the peppers and beans through. Remove the lid and sprinkle Tabasco sauce over the skillet, and then gently stir it through. Turn the burner off. Taste the pasta to confirm that it is cooked through, and if necessary add 1/4 teaspoon salt (probably not necessary if you have used broth - it depends on the existing saltiness of the chorizo, the beans, and the salsa).



Sprinkle with cheese and cover briefly cover again to let the cheese melt. Serve with cilantro if you like (we were out, and so we served it with diced avocado to squeeze in an extra vegetable.



This dish heats up very well in the microwave (add a bit of extra cheese if you're feeling frisky) and so makes an excellent lunch.