Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (2024)

By Kim Hardesty

Have control of what goes into your chorizo with the great recipe for homemade, fresh chorizo. Don't like one of the ingredients? Customize it per your taste - it's only cooking!

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Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (1)

Although my mother was a wonderful cook and prepared many gourmet meals for us growing up, I had never had chorizo until I married my husband and moved out to California.

One of my first Sign Language Interpreting jobs in San Diego, had me placed at a car repair school in the heart of down town. Class began at 7 AM and continued until 2 PM with an hour off for lunch. At ten o'clock, Rosie would pull around the corner in her Roach Coach (a term of endearment for her food truck) and beep her horn twice.

The line for her truck was always long and one day I decided to see what the fuss was about. Never having ordered from a food truck before I asked one of the students to make a suggestion. I ordered a wonderful burrito filled with potatoes, onions and chorizo. It was one of the best things I had ever had in my life! Viva chorizo!

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (2)

I have been working hard on developing a recipe for a low carb, gluten-free, Paleo breakfast casserole that includes chorizo. I usually make it on the weekend and we enjoy it for breakfast during the week. About to prepare my latest version, I found that the grocery store had sold-out of chorizo for the Super Bowl! (Like What?)

I had some plain breakfast style sausage at home, so I decided to make my own, homemade version. This is what I came up with after looking at many, many, recipes. I played with the recipe several times so we have LOTS of chorizo in the freezer! (WINNING!)

While homemade chorizo sausage tastes a little different than what I purchase from the grocery store, it is easy to prepare and I think it tastes much better.

What makes me happy about making homemade chorizo sausage is that I can control what goes into it. Let's face it, we seldom get to peek at the ingredient list when purchasing the products made in-house at the grocery store. I never know if there is any hidden sugar, dairy or gluten in their products.

Making my own spice mix puts me in control!

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (3)

The hardest part in preparing homemade chorizo sausage is assembling the ingredients; the list is quite long. But, I have noticed that some of the best dishes, those that deliver the best complexity of flavors, have long ingredient lists. Some of my favorites are Mexican Mole sauce, Indian and Thai curries and anything created by Chef Paul Prudhomme. I suggest using real ground chiles instead of the pre-mixed chili powder sold in the store.

The recipe makes two pounds of very flavorful sausage - enough to freeze for next time. I think you are going to love it!

May I suggest using a little homemade chorizo sausage in your scrambled eggs or adding it to your low carb, gluten-freeChorizoChile Rellenos(with a great new photo!). You wont be sorry that you did!

If you have never tried making a Mexican Mole sauce before, try my quick and dirty Faux Mole Sauce(new photos coming soon). It's great served over poultry & especially delicious on chicken tacos and chalupas!

⅛ of the recipe (4 oz raw weight) is 2 net carbs

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (4)

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe

Delicious homemade chorizo using fresh sausage lets you be in charge of what goes in it. So easy to make, you'll wonder why you ever bought it in the store!

5 from 11 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Basics, Dinner

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 2 pounds

Calories: 494kcal

Author: lowcarbmaven.com

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds fresh pork sausage

Chorizo Seasoning Blend

  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
  • 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
  • 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano rubbed
  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme rubbed
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon white pepper
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon chipotle chile powder or more
  • ¼ teaspoon ground clove
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or more
  • ¼ teaspoon ground bay leaf or sage
  • ¼ cup vinegar red wine or cider is my preference

Instructions

  • Put the fresh pork sausage into a large bowl and add the vinegar. Mix the vinegar into the sausage with a hand mixer.

  • Into a smaller bowl, measure all of the dry seasonings for the chorizo and blend together. Sprinkle the chorizo seasoning over the pork sausage and mix with the hand mixer until all of the ingredients are incorporated, evenly.

  • Divide the pork into four ½ pound (or 8 ¼ pound) servings. Shape into patties, wrap, and freeze what you are not going to use right away.

  • It will keep in the refrigerator for 5 days before cooking.

Notes

Nutrition Facts

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 494Calories from Fat 414

% Daily Value*

Fat 46g71%

Carbohydrates 3g1%

Fiber 1g4%

Protein 14g28%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition

Calories: 494kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 46g | Fiber: 1g

More Low Carb and Keto Recipe Basics

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Reader Interactions

Comments

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  1. Gilbert Longoria

    This recipe is delicious. I live in deep South Texas where good chorizo is really available. Making it from scratch allows me to personalize it to my liking. It is less greasy than store bought chorizo and, with a little tweaking, delicious. Thank you for the recipe.

    Reply

  2. Laura P

    Recipe sounds great! Just wanted to share that I make my own chorizo using cauliflower crumbles. It comes out great and the taste is very comparable to chorizo. I mix it with papas or eggs. It’s a great way to cut back on the fat, and it’s very low in carbs too. I’m anxious to try your chile rellenos recipe. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      Hi Laura. While I've often thought of making this with tofu, frozen-thawed-then-crumbled, I haven't thought to make it with cauliflower crumbles. It sounds divine. Thanks for another great Vegetarian idea! -Kim

      Reply

  3. Les

    Sounds great! What kind of pork sausage do you use? If unseasoned I might just grind a pork butt and start from there. Thoughts?

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      Hi Les. I've used ground pork and I've used unseasoned sausage. Since the ground pork is pretty lean, I add a few tablespoons of light-in-flavor olive oil or bacon grease to increase the fat content so it doesn't dry out when it's cooked. -Kim

      Reply

  4. John

    Just made this last night using 85/15 ground beef. I made a scramble with it, this morning, and I may never buy chorizo again. The 15% fat was enough, but, I'm sure that more would be better.

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      What a great idea to use beef, John. You could always add a little olive oil or bacon grease to the overall mixture if you needed to, but I often drain off the excess grease, so you may be onto something! -Kim

      Reply

  5. Denise

    I have never had Chroizo, but I want to make my own. How spicy is this recipe? I like some kick to my food, but want to make sure it is not too spicy. Again, I have never tasted Chorizo. Is is comparable in spice to Italian sausage, which I love?

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      Hi Denise. Chorizo is wonderful. It is full of spices so it is full of flavor. It can be "spicy" like a jalapeno, but this recipe is not. To make it more "spicy" add more cayenne pepper. I suggest making it as is the first time and then see what spices you may want to omit or increase in amount. -Kim

      Reply

  6. Denise

    This sounds delicious, but I am confused about the pork. Your recipe calls for pork sausage. Pork sausage is already seasoned. Shouldn't this be made with just ground pork since I would be adding many spices?. Pork "sausage" is already seasoned. Please clarify.

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      Hi Denise. I can sometimes get ground pork specifically for making sausage in the store. It has a high fat content where as regular ground pork is very lean. If you can only find lean ground pork, add a little olive oil or bacon grease to it (1-2 tbsp). -Kim

      Reply

  7. Rebecca

    Wow - this is amazing! So easy and the spice blend is fantastic. I baked one large "patty" in the oven at 425* for 12 minutes and it came out perfectly. So nice to be able to adjust the spice level to your own taste.

    Reply

    • Kim Hardesty

      I'm so happy you like the recipe, Linda! -Kim

      Reply

  8. Tom

    As promised I am back with what I deem as the best chorizo recipe I have found so far and I have tried many. I cooked the chorizo this morning and scrambled some eggs with 3 flour tortillas for breakfast As usual I will probably tweak the recipe just a little, maybe a clove or two of finely chopped fresh garlic instead of garlic powder and who know what else I may do. This recipe needs nothing else done to it, delicious as is but like all my recipes I look up I tend to make them my own. Thank you for this recipe.

    Reply

  9. Tom

    Just finished making the chorizo and without even cooking it I can tell this is the Mexican Chorizo I have been searching for. I have had chorizo in Mexico and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas many times and loved it but never thought I would miss this unique taste of Mexico until I moved to Florida and found out how I miss it. Tried a whole host of other recipes and tweaked many of them to what I thought I was looking for to no avail. I will put this in the refer and let it marinate for 24 hours and I will cook some up tomorrow and report back with my findings. Excited.

    Reply

  10. Linda Starnes

    This has to be very tasty!!!!!

    Reply

  11. Chris

    I dont think that nutrition information can be correct? 494 calories per gram!!!! :)

    Reply

    • Kim

      No Chris, that's not right. I am sorry for the confusion. Changing over to a new recipe card was not seamless. I will get the info for you and correct the recipe today! Thank you for letting me know there was a problem. -Kim

      Reply

  12. Michelle

    Sounds great. What is the additional yellow items in the bowl photo?

    Reply

    • Kim

      That was scrambled eggs, Michelle! Lol. -Kim

      Reply

  13. Michelle

    what does it mean to rub oregano or thyme?
    also, I don't eat pork, would a high fat beef work or be too tough?

    Reply

    • Kim

      Rubbing herbs breaks them up and releases their oils. I measure them into my palm and rub them with the finger of my other hand to break them up into a powder. I have never made this with beef. -Kim

      Reply

  14. Bert

    That Paleo breakfast casserole with Chorizo looks amazing and I've been searching for the recipe. We're doing a Keto diet and my wife gets sick when she eats eggs. Thank you for posting great recipes!

    Reply

  15. Nancy

    could you make this with ground turkey instead of pork to lower the calories?

    Reply

    • Kim

      You could, Nancy, but fat carries flavor... This recipe makes two pounds. If you divide that into 8, 4 oz servings then the fat content drops down to 5 grams per serving, which I don't think is too bad for sausage. -Kim

      Reply

  16. Matt

    This was so good - very much reminds me of the southwest!

    Reply

    • Kim

      I'm glad. Thank you! -Kim

      Reply

  17. Sandy

    I like being able to read recipes then come back to them for grocery lists. It is difficult to find sometime when I come back looking for the second time can you include a search feature to make it easier?

    Reply

    • Kim

      Sandy, I have been wracking my brains about how I could make the recipe index easier to navigate. It will take a little time to straighten it out. I do have a search function. It is above my picture at the tip of the right sidebar on desktop. If you are on mobile, it will be above my picture the bottom of the page. I hope this helps for now. I agree that this theme is too hard to search for recipes, but again, I have been thinking about it. Have a great day and thanks for the feedback. -Kim

      Reply

  18. Katherine

    I'm not quite sure if I should start with ground pork or actual sausage. Wouldn't that already have spices in it?

    Reply

    • Kim

      Great question Katherine. At my grocery store, I can purchase pork for sausage. It has a different grind than regular ground pork and of course the fat content is considerably higher. You can use ground pork, but I would add some bacon fat or it will be too lean and probably tough. The fat helps carry the flavor throughout the meat. -Kim

      Reply

  19. Melissa

    I stopped eating chorizo because of the heinous ingredients they add in, so this makes me happy. Actually many of your recipes make me happy. I think you are one of the top LC food bloggers out there and I take my food very seriously! Your latest caramel and pie crust recipe are tops! Keep up the super work :)

    Reply

    • Kim

      Melissa! Thank you so much. I think that is the best compliment I have ever had. I'm truly touched. I am glad you enjoy some of the recipes and it's my absolute pleasure to share them. Have a wonderful weekend. -Kim

      Reply

  20. Cathy Jo

    Looks delicious! I do have a question-- Is it pork sausage or just plain ground pork? I am anxious to try this one!

    Reply

    • Kim

      Thanks, Cathy! It's ground pork sausage (my store calls it country sausage), but I have used the spice mix for chili and other things, too. I hope you like it. Have a nice weekend. -Kim

      Reply

  21. Elizabeth @ Bowl of Delicious

    Whoa. I cannot WAIT to try this! I can't find chorizo anywhere in the store but I haven't tried making it myself yet. I see some huevos rancheros in my future... thanks for the awesome recipe! Pinned :-)

    Reply

    • Kim

      Elizabeth- I'm glad you found this recipe helpful. Is there anything better than eggs and chorizo? Enjoy!

      Reply

  22. Jess @ Eating with Alice

    Wow, this recipe looks great! I used to love chorizo sausages before I became vegetarian - it's one of the few things I seem to miss! I might see if I can substitute vegetarian sausages in this recipe.

    Jess xo
    http://www.eatingwithalice.com

    Reply

    • Kim

      Thanks, Jess! When I was a vegetarian I used TVP a lot & would combine it with lentils. I wonder if that would work? I also would freeze my tofu, thaw it, and it would get a spongy meat-like texture that would soak-up sauces and flavors. If you try it, let me know what works!

      Reply

Fresh Homemade Chorizo Sausage Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you make fresh chorizo? ›

How to cook crispy chorizo sausage
  1. Place the chorizo on a cutting board.
  2. Slice the chorizo diagonally, 5mm thick.
  3. Heat a frying pan on a medium heat.
  4. Cook for 5 minutes, turning occasionally, until the chorizo is crisp on the outside.
  5. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towel.

What is the difference between fresh and cured chorizo? ›

Fresh chorizo is raw, made with ground pork, and resembles hot Italian sausage in texture and appearance. It's the stuff that you'd get behind the butcher's case. Dry chorizo also looks like sausage, but more like cured sausages and salame.

Why is vinegar used in chorizo? ›

Chorizo mean sausage in Spanish but there are versions of this sausage in many countries - sometimes with different spellings and slight variations in spices. The Mexican-style sausage uses high levels of paprika and chilies. Vinegar is added for lowering the pH of the meat.

What is the difference between Mexican chorizo and Spanish chorizo? ›

Mexican vs Spanish chorizo

“Mexican-style chorizo is actually raw meat that's been heavily seasoned with dry chilies and aromatic spices like cinnamon and clove. Spanish chorizo is a hard sausage that's been cured like a salami,” explains Sánchez.

Is fresh chorizo raw? ›

There are two kinds of pork chorizo: Mexican and Spanish. Mexican chorizo is generally packaged raw and must be cooked before you eat it. Spanish chorizo is made safe to eat through a curing process, so you don't need to cook it.

How long does chorizo cure for? ›

Allow 6–10 weeks for the chorizo to cure if you want to eat it raw. Serve cut into thin slices. Note: Should you want to, you can cook with the chorizo soon after mixing rather than leave it to cure.

What are the two types of chorizo? ›

Chorizo is a type of sausage with a spicy and flavor-packed edge to it. There are two broad categories of chorizo - Spanish and Mexican.

Why is Mexican chorizo so good? ›

Because Mexican chorizo is flavored with peppers, it has a slightly spicier taste compared to smoky Spanish chorizo. Additionally, Mexican chorizo is sold fresh and must be cooked before consuming; you can either buy loose chorizo or remove the meat from the casing, or you can cook the links whole.

Why is Mexican chorizo so red? ›

Mexican chorizo is generally made with ground pork mixed with pork fat, vinegar, and a variety of spices, including spicy red pepper, which gives it its signature bright-red color.

Why should you peel chorizo? ›

Depending on the type of chorizo you are using and how you intend to use it in a recipe, the skin may need to be peeled off before cooking as it can be quite tough and chewy.

Do you take skin off chorizo before cooking? ›

If you're using soft (i.e. uncooked) chorizo then no, you don't need to remove the skin, because it should cook with the sausage. If you are using the cured, ready to eat chorizo you should take the skin off as it will be tough.

What is the difference between cooking chorizo and normal chorizo? ›

Chorizo can either be bought as a whole cured sausage or as soft cooking chorizo which must be cooked before eating. Cooking chorizo are softer, moister and more similar to a classic sausage, typically releasing delicious spicy red oil when cooked.

Do you have to cook chorizo or can you eat it raw? ›

Chorizo can be bought as a whole sausage of either soft cooking chorizo – which must be cooked before eating – or a firmer, drier cured sausage that can be sliced and eaten without cooking. It is also sold thinly sliced, like salami, to be enjoyed raw as tapas.

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