This Chorizo Bolognese is a chorizo twist on your classic bolognese with the sweetness of apricots and the smokiness of turmeric pasta .

A quick and easy, irresistibly flavorful and comforting dish, this Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese with Turmeric Pasta is perfect for week nights, and it’s also one of our favorite cozy winter recipes .

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese - an easy dinner recipe that can be made with homemade or storebought pasta! Sweet and smoky flavors of this pasta dish will win you over in a snap! - 1

As the first post of year 2016, I decided to share with you guys one of my tried and tested, incredibly flavorful, quick and easy recipes that’s perfect for weeknight meals.

If you like pasta bolognese (which is basically everyone I guess), then you’re absolutely going to LOVE this. This is one of my favorite quick week night pasta recipes to make, along with my cajun chicken and sausage pasta and spicy Tuscan sausage pasta!

Chorizo Bolognese

This Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese with Homemade Turmeric Pasta is a more flavorful twist on your classic beef bolognese and will soon become a staple in your kitchen, I’m sure of it!

Juicy and sweet dried apricots with hearty chorizo bolognese is as delicious as a pasta sauce can get. You can substitute homemade turmeric pasta with store-bought of course, and then toss it with some turmeric and olive oil.

Homemade Turmeric Pasta - Bright yellow, smoky turmeric infused into homemade pasta dough. Fun to make and gives your pasta a delicious smokey flavor with a pleasant, slight bitterness. - 2

I have made this many times and this is probably my favorite version. It’s dairy-free as well, but you’re more than welcome to grate some Parmesan cheese on top if you like.

It’s quick and easy, and is the perfect comfort food for cold weather (another dish that I’ve been making often lately is this delicious beef cannelloni ). It’s drier than traditional bolognese, but has more flavor thanks to the chorizo sausage mince.

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese - an easy dinner recipe that can be made with homemade or storebought pasta! Sweet and smokey flavors of this pasta dish will win you over in a snap! - 3

Homemade pasta

I have previously shared the recipe for brown butter pasta (AMAZING!), so making pasta at home is something I have loved doing long before I even owned a pasta machine.

The first time can be a little time consuming but once you get the hang of it, it becomes addictive and you’ll soon be experimenting with different pasta flavors, like this gorgeous turmeric pasta .

And of course if you have a pasta machine to do the rolling for you, it’s going to be that much easier and I’d definitely recommend homemade pasta.

Mr K and I definitely prefer it over store-bought, although we do still keep a packet of dry spaghetti at home for an emergency. 🙂

Homemade Turmeric Pasta - Bright yellow, smokey turmeric infused into homemade pasta dough. Fun to make and gives your pasta a delicious smoky flavor with a pleasant, slight bitterness. - 4

Homemade Turmeric Pasta

Ingredients for apricot and chorizo bolognese

This apricot and chorizo bolognese is surprisingly easy. You’ll need good quality Mexican chorizo, dried apricots, cayenne pepper, garlic and onion .

And with a beautifully poached egg on top, you can create something so amazing that can rival any fancy pasta dish that you’ve ever had!

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese - an easy dinner recipe that can be made with homemade or storebought pasta! Sweet and smokey flavors of this pasta dish will win you over in a snap! - 5

Recipe

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese - an easy dinner recipe that can be made with homemade or storebought pasta! Sweet and smokey flavors of this pasta dish will win you over in a snap! - 6

If you’re a regular on my blog, you’d know that I’m obsessed with the combination of spicy, sweet and savory and this one ticked all the boxes.

Little pockets of dried apricots within the chorizo bolognese add juicy sweetness that perfectly complements the savory flavor profile of the pasta sauce. If you can’t get your hands on apricots, you can substitute them with raisins, though I personally prefer apricots more.

Turmeric is a spice that I’m very familiar with thanks to my Asian roots. It’s what gives a lot of those yellow curries their characteristic color. It’s a mild spice with a bitter taste but a dash of it brings any curry to life. And a teaspoon of it gave this dish a brilliantly earthy, almost smoky flavor.

Turmeric pasta acts as a wonderful base for the complex flavors of the chorizo bolognese as well. You can find out all about how to make homemade turmeric pasta right here.

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese with Turmeric Pasta

Ingredients

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese

  • 9 oz Mexican Chorizo meat uncooked sausage meat
  • 2.5 oz dried apricots diced into small pieces
  • 1 - 2 tsp chilli flakes/crushed red pepper optional
  • 3 cloves of garlic minced
  • ½ heaped tsp dried oregano
  • ¼ onion chopped finely
  • Salt if needed

Turmeric Pasta

  • Follow this recipe to make Turmeric Pasta from scratch OR
  • 4 oz dry spaghetti or fettuccine
  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric + another generous pinch of ground turmeric
  • Olive oil
  • Water and salt to cook per package instructions

Instructions

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese

  • Heat a little oil in a non-stick pan (about 1 tsp, just to avoid the onion and garlic from sticking to the pan).
  • Add the chopped onions and garlic and saute for a few minutes till the onions soften.
  • Add the chorizo meat, apricots, and chilli flakes and saute until the meat has cooked. If it gets too dry, add a little water.
  • Add the dry oregano and cook for a few more minutes. Add salt to taste.
  • Serve with pasta and a poached egg on top (optional) with parsley and extra oregano sprinkled on top as well.

Turmeric Pasta

  • Follow this recipe to make Homemade Turmeric Pasta (recipe is for 4 servings), OR
  • cook dry pasta according to package instructions, but add the turmeric to the water as it boils, before you add the pasta.
  • When the pasta is cooked, drain and toss it with some olive oil and a generous pinch of turmeric.
  • Serve with apricot and chorizo bolognese.

Recipe from The Flavor Bender by Dini Kodippili

Apricot and Chorizo Bolognese with Turmeric Pasta https://www.theflavorbender.com/apricot-chorizo-bolognese-homemade-turmeric-pasta/