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The Goddess loves those lovely little dishes the Spanish have given us—tapas!  An array of tapas is a favorite way that we like to entertain.  I’ve shared some with you in the past, but there are more…oh, yes, many more!  Tapas are welcome anytime.  A couple of dishes make a great mid-week dinner.  Many can be made ahead and are, in fact, much tastier when they set overnight (or for a couple of days).

Many of us have enjoyed that age-old mixture of chili sauce and grape jelly that act as a hot tub for meatballs.  This isn’t that.  But, the principle is pretty much the same—sweet, sour, but just a bit salty and a bit spicy. This dish involves good sausage, which can be sautéed ahead, covered and chilled.  Then, make the sauce, cut up the sausages and drop them into the sauce to simmer until heated through.

For the sauce, sauté the onion in olive oil until the onion softens; add the garlic, paprika and cumin.  Deglaze the pan with wine and water; stir in the orange zest and simmer for a couple of minutes.  Add the chunks of guava paste; simmer, stirring occasionally until the guava paste is mostly melted.  I use the wooden spoon to mash particularly stubborn cubes of guava paste. Stir in the tomato sauce and sherry vinegar; the mixture will be reasonably thin.  Simmer over medium-low heat until it reduces and thickens slightly, about 6-8 minutes.  Drop the chunks of sausage (or meatballs) into the sauce; simmer until heated through.  Serve and enjoy.  You can make a double or triple batch of the sauce, as it keeps well and can be frozen successfully.  Because, it’s all about the sauce….

Spicy Guava, Tomato and Onion Sauce

  • Servings: Makes about 2 cups
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

  • 1/2 cup finely minced red or sweet onion
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked sweet or Hungarian paprika
  • Large pinch of ground cumin
  • 1/3 cup dry white wine
  • 1/3 cup water or broth
  • 1/4 cup espresso coffee (or extra strong coffee)
  • 2-3 teaspoons finely julienned orange zest
  • 1-2X2X1-inch chunk guava paste, diced
  • 3/4 cup tomato sauce
  • 3-4 teaspoons sherry vinegar
  • Sautéed sausages cut into slices or meatballs

Heat a heavy saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil, onion, and garlic.  Sauté until the onion softens; add the paprika and cumin.  Deglaze the pan with wine and water; stir in the orange zest.  Simmer for 2 minutes.  Add the chunks of guava paste; simmer for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.  When the guava paste is mostly melted, add the tomato sauce and sherry vinegar.  The mixture will be reasonably thin.  Simmer the mixture over medium-low heat until it reduces and thickens slightly, about 6-8 minutes.  Taste and correct the seasoning.

You can use this sauce now or let it stand for at least 6 hours.

Add the cooked sausage or meatballs into the sauce.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  Serve hot, with the sauce, in small dishes.  This is delicious with good bread, too.

Spicy Guava, Tomato and Onion Sauce Recipe©Marcia Lahens 2019.  All rights reserved.

You can put chunks of chicken in this, as well as pork cubes.  It’s just a good sauce.  I’ve added seedless concord grapes to this and it was wonderful.  I increase the vinegar when I add dried or fresh fruit to the sauce.  This is a very, very delicious sauce.  I have served this over grilled pork chops and grilled chicken breasts, too.  As you know, The Goddess is a coffee-holic.  Since this sauce can be a bit on the sweet side, I use some coffee to balance out the flavors.  Coffee is so wonderful and it’s a lovely addition when you want some depth and to counter sweetness in a sauce of stew pot.

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