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We’re having some really crap weather here in England.

It seems to have been rainy, windy and dark most of the time since before Christmas. Occasionally the sun punches through for a while to reveal some gorgeous skies, but mainly it’s been grey and cold and miserable for days on end.

So not so good for outdoor pursuits then, but perfect for staying in and enjoying some hearty wholesome slow food - food that takes a whole Sunday paper (even the business bit), plus colour supplement, plus at least one sitting through Groundhog Day (or similar) to cook. Slow-cooked food is just the best. Melt-in-the-mouth, gooey, sticky and deeply delicious - and it fills the whole house with mouth-watering smells all afternoon.

Here’s a favourite adapted from a Peter Gordon recipe that featured in a Delicious magazine a couple of years ago, but now suffering from multiple stains and smears across it so I thought i’d jot it down and share it before it was lost for good. Not originally a slow-cooker, but all the better for it when it is.

Chorizo and Chickpea Stew

400g of Pork Shoulder (must be from a pig that literally skipped down the path to the Abattoir of it’s own accord mind you)
300g Chorizo Sausage (that’s about 3 sausages)
1 bunch Spring Onions
Some plain flour
Olive oil
Tablespoon of cumin seeds, toasted (if you can be bothered)
1 x tin of Butter beans
1 x tin of Chickpeas
Couple of sprigs of Rosemary, chopped
1 pint of Chicken Stock
Good handful of Parsley, chopped
Bulb of garlic, peeled and sliced
3 onions, sliced
Splash of Cider Vinegar

Method

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.

Put the Pork in a processor and blitz slighty. Add the chopped Chorizo and blitz some more. Then add the spring onions, the cumin seeds and some salt, and blitz some more until you have a sticky ball of meat mixture and a real washing-up headache for later on.

Form into golf ball sized pieces, roll in the flour, and fry in batches in the olive oil, turning as required until a crispy crust has formed all over. Remove to an oven dish with a lid.

The chorizo will have released some of it’s flavoursome oil by now. Fry the onion slices for a few minutes in this oil before adding the garlic slices and chopped Rosemary. Continue frying for a few minutes, before adding the drained Chickpeas and Butter beans and the Chicken Stock.

Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 mins. Transfer the contents to join the meatballs in the casserole and slam the lot in the oven for a couple of hours.

After a couple of hours minimum (and you really can leave this for ages just make sure it doesn’t run dry) remove from the oven, throw in the chopped parsley and cider vinegar to lift the final dish and cut through the richness. Serve in deep bowls with Kale or Spring Greens tossed in Olive oil and lemon juice, and a really good glass bottle of wine.

Bonus! Tomorrow - my recipe for Chinese “stay-at-home-away” that many of you have asked for. Slower than a snails slow bits …