Some recipes come together because of what you find at the market rather than what you had planned. This sausage casserole started with a packet of pork and herb sausages — the kind you find in southern Spain that are, frankly, a reasonable substitute for a decent British banger. Not quite up to my old Welsh Dragons from the butcher back home, but very good indeed and perfectly suited to a sausage casserole with spicy tomato, pearl barley, and red lentils.

Sausage casserole with spicy tomato, pearl barley and red lentils — Casa Adora

Pearl barley and red lentils together give the casserole a wonderful body — the barley adds chew, and the lentils thicken the sauce into something deeply satisfying. A ñora pepper adds a gentle, smoky Spanish warmth that lifts the whole thing considerably. Semi-sundried tomatoes are the ideal here, but sundried ones work well too — just soak them in hot water first. If you don't have semi-sundried tomatoes, take a look at How to Make Homemade Sun-Dried Tomatoes — drying your own in the Andalucían sunshine is considerably more satisfying than buying them in a jar. The Andalucían sunshine does it better than any oven.

Serve with a squeeze of lemon and crusty bread. This is a cold evening dish, even if cold evenings in Andalucía are a relative concept.

Sausage Casserole with Spicy Tomato, Pearl Barley and Red Lentils

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 4 pork and herb sausages, sliced into thumb-sized pieces
• 75 g pearl barley, rinsed
• 100 g red lentils, rinsed
• 4–5 shallots, peeled and kept whole
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1 ñora pepper, blended or finely chopped — a small, round dried Spanish pepper with a mild, sweet, smoky flavour. Available online or in Spanish delis; a pinch of smoked paprika makes a reasonable substitute.
• A handful of semi-sundried tomatoes
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• A good glug of dry white wine
• Rapeseed oil
• Salt and black pepper
• Fresh flat-leaf parsley, to finish
• Lemon, quartered, to serve

Method

1. Rinse the pearl barley and boil for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Rinse the red lentils and set aside.
3. Brown the sausage pieces in a lidded frying pan with a little rapeseed oil. Remove and set aside.
4. In the same pan, add the shallots and carrot. Cook until beginning to caramelise.
5. Grate over the garlic and add the ñora pepper. Stir well.
6. Return the sausages and add the pearl barley, coating it well in the oil.
7. Turn up the heat, add the white wine, and cook it out.
8. Add the chopped tomatoes and semi-sundried tomatoes. Stir in the red lentils.
9. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 30–40 minutes until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
10. Season, scatter over fresh flat-leaf parsley, and serve with quartered lemon and crusty bread.

This recipe is part of my Pork Recipes collection — from Spanish classics to van life chops and everything in between.

Wonky photos, proper food, genuine adventures — The Flexible Chef