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Tomato, olive and lemon mezze

Course Main Course, mezze, Sauce
Cuisine Mediterranean
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • olive oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, chopped
  • 1 red chilli, seeded and chopped
  • grated zest of half a large lemon
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 3 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 1 1/2 tsp cumin, crushed
  • 150g Smoked meat We used venison, but bacon is also fine.
  • 150g Mushrooms, sliced If you are using boletus or another strong mushroom then use less, as your gut feel dictates.
  • 1 can tomato and onion mix or just canned tomatoes, whatever
  • handful of olives, pitted and chopped
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • handful of basil leaves, washed and chopped

Instructions

  • Fry the onion, carrot, chilli, lemon zest and sugar in olive oil in a large pan on high heat until starting to brown and caramelise - stir constantly to stop them sticking. 
    Remove from the pan and blend into a smooth paste in a food processor or nutribullet. 
  • Fry the garlic slices and cumin in the same pan with another splash of olive oil for a minute or 2 until the garlic is just starting to change colour.
    Add the bacon/ham/smoked springbok at this point, and fry for another minute. 
    Add the mushrooms and continue to fry until soft, adding a bit of water to deglaze the pan and stop the spices from sticking and burning if necessary. 
  • Add the canned tomato and the onion/carrot paste, along with the olives, paprika and basil. 
    Cook for another 2-3 minutes until well combined - you can continue to cook down if it's a bit sloppy still but it should be nice and thick at this point. 
    Serve on its own as a mezze drizzled with olive oil, or on noodles as the best damn pasta sauce you've ever had. Enjoy!