© David Loftus

southern sausage stew

method

Put a splash of olive oil in a large saucepan and let it get hot.
Add your sausages and let them cook away so they brown
nicely on all sides. Once golden and crisp, take them out of
the pan and put them on a plate to rest. Depending on your
sausages, there may be a lot of fat left behind in the pan. You
only want to keep about Ό cup of it in the pan, so carefully
pour any extra away. If you don’t have enough, just add a
splash more olive oil.

Add your onion, bell peppers, and celery to the fat and fry on
a medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until
softened. Stir in your garlic, chiles, thyme, and spices and fry
for another minute or two. Stir in your fl our and vinegar, and
after a couple of minutes add your browned sausages, chicken
broth, and canned tomatoes, using a wooden spoon to break
them up a little. Season with a nice big pinch of salt and pepper,
stir, then bring to a boil and let it tick away for 15 minutes or so,
until you have a thick and delicious gravy.

Serve with a hearty spoonful of rice on the side and sprinkle
over some sliced scallions, chopped parsley, and any reserved
celery leaves. Really tasty stuff!

PS: I’ve also stirred chopped up pieces of cooked chicken,
quail, and smoky bacon through this with great results!

serves: 6

ingredients

• olive oil
• good-quality sausages (2 or 3 per person)
• 1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 2 celery stalks, trimmed and roughly
chopped, yellow leaves reserved
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1–2 fresh red chiles, seeded and
finely chopped
• 10 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
• 1 heaping teaspoon paprika
• 1 heaping teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2–3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon white wine or apple cider vinegar
• generous 3 cups chicken broth, preferably organic
• 1 x 14-oz can diced tomatoes
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• cooked long-grain rice, to serve
• 3 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
• a small bunch of fresh curly parsley, roughly chopped