There’s something so brilliantly simple about meals you can cook in a single pot. It goes back to medieval times, I guess, a self-contained meal bubbling away on the fire. It doesn’t matter if you overcook it, it can be reheated a few days later - in fact, a lot of stews actually taste even better if they are made ahead - and there’s almost no washing up. What’s not to like?

Traditionally-made hotpots have vegetables and water or stock added all at once and are put straight into the oven for long, slow cooking, but I prefer to add extra flavour (and shorten cooking time) with some light pre-frying.

Serves 4-6

There’s lots of smoked paprika-flavoured chorizo around in food shops now, from thin links to plump meaty fresh sausage. Chorizo contains a good amount of creamy fat, so slice and fry gently to extract the delicious oil which you can then use to sauté the rest of the ingredients. This hotpot has foods added in stages and is best cooked on top of the stove.

200g smoked chorizo sausage
250g pork belly rashers, de-rinded
2 fat cloves garlic, chopped
3-4 fresh butchers’-style sausages, ideally spicy
1 onion, sliced or chopped
1 green pepper, sliced
1-2 tbsp olive oil, if needed
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
A good pinch dried oregano
2 bay leaves
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
400g can chickpeas or cannellini or flageolet beans
1-2 baby cabbages, or ½ small green cabbage
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Peel the chorizo if necessary, then slice thinly. Heat a large saucepan and then gently sauté the chorizo until a spicy red oil starts to seep out and the sausage slices begin to crisp. Remove these with
a slotted spoon and set aside.
2 Meanwhile, cut the pork into small chunks and fry gently with the garlic in the chorizo oil for about 5 minutes until sealed. Cut each sausage into bite-sized pieces and add these to the pan with the pork, stirring until nicely browned.
3 Then stir in the onion and pepper slices, adding some extra oil if necessary. Carry on cooking on a medium heat for another 5 minutes or so until softened. Return the chorizo and mix in the spices and herbs.
4 Sizzle for a couple more minutes, then stir in the tomatoes and add some seasoning. Bring to the boil, adding a little water if needed. Simmer gently, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5 Meanwhile, quarter the baby cabbages and trim out the central core of each quarter if you want to. (If using half a larger cabbage then cut into thick slices.)
6 Add the cabbage to the pot along with the pulses. Carry on cooking for about 10 minutes until the cabbage is wilted and softened. Check the seasoning and serve.

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