May 27: Super Mashers with Shrimp and Chorizo Hash

4 large starchy potatoes, such as Idaho
   Coarse salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
4 garlic cloves, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1/2 pound diced chorizo
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
   Coarse black pepper
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced
2 Anaheim or poblano chilies, seeded and thinly sliced
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 to 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped
   Several drops of hot sauce, such as Tabasco, to taste
   Juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup sour cream or reduced-fat sour cream
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk or reduced-fat milk, depending on how soft you like your mashers

Cut the taters into small chunks. Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with cold water. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Uncover, add salt to season, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.

In a small pot over medium heat, add about 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil. Add the butter. When the butter melts into the oil, add the garlic.

Saute the garlic for 1 to 2 minutes, then add the scallions and remove the pan from the heat. Reserve.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper, then add the chorizo to the hot pan and brown for one minute.

Add the shrimp and scoot the meat off to one side of the pan.

Add the remaining tablepoon of vegetable oil to the pan. Add the peppers, chilies, and onions, season with salt and pepper, then toss them around, searing the edges, for another minute or two before combining all the meat and veggies together.

Add the thyme and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, keeping everything moving around like a stir-fry. Turn off the heat and drizzle some hot sauce and the lime juice over the shrimp and veggies. Adjust the seasonings.

Drain the potatoes, then return them to the hot pot to evaporate some of the water content. Add the reserved garlic and scallion mixture to the potatoes along with the sour cream and start smashing away with a masher.

Add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup milk to get the potatoes to the desired consistency. Season the super mashers with salt and pepper.

Serve the mashers with the shrimp and chorizo mixture on top.

4 SERVINGS

This meal was a little better than I thought it would be. I was getting tired of potatoes and peppers, but I really liked the flavor that the chorizo gave to the potatoes. The lime was really good too, making the whole thing fresh and tasty.

I omitted the peeling the potatoes step, because I was in a hurry today. I used red potatoes, so it was good that way (and my husband didn't have to eat them; he hates the skins). I changed the heat for the garlic from medium-low to medium, so the garlic could get completely cooked and not have that raw flavor. I omitted the oil from the meat step, since the chorizo is already loaded with fat. I did halve the recipe today because we are leaving for the weekend this afternoon. We still had too many leftovers!