The basic requirements are onion and garlic, a grain, good stock and lots of veg, but you can liven it up with bacon or chorizo, by stirring in pesto or by sprinkling over gremolata. It also reheats well.

• 2 tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cooking chorizo sausages, skins removed, crumbled into small pieces
• 1 dried red chilli or a good pinch of chilli flakes, to taste
• 4 tomatoes (peeled if you have time), finely chopped, or 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 150g pearled spelt, rinsed well and drained
• 1.5 litres chicken or good vegetable stock
• 200g curly kale or cavolo nero, leaves stripped from their stalks and roughly chopped
• salt and black pepper

Heat the oil in a pan over a low heat, add the onion and fry gently for 10 minutes, stirring now and then to stop it catching, until soft and translucent. Add the chorizo and fry, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes more. Stir in the chilli, tomatoes, spelt and stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, blanch and squeeze the kale. Add the kale to the pan and cook for a further 15 minutes or until the spelt is tender. Keep an eye on the liquid and top up a little if needed. Check the seasoning before serving.

Tip: Peeling tomatoes

To skin tomatoes easily, cut a little cross in the base then lower them in a bowl of boiling water. Leave for about 45 seconds until you can see the skins just starting to furl away at the base, then transfer them to a bowl of cold water and peel off the skins. A good tomato purée (containing only tomato) is often a better alternative in winter.

Credit – www.riverford.co.uk/recipes

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