Photo by David B. Moore A spicy, chile-flavored sausage, Mexican chorizo adds fiery sizzle to south-of-the-border dishes

ALL-PURPOSE INGREDIENT:
Displaying a deep orange-red color, Mexican chorizo consists of coarsely ground meat seasoned with garlic, chiles and other spices. It is sold either loosely ground or in a sausage casing. Unlike the ready-to-eat, paprika-flavored cured Spanish chorizo, the Mexican version usually is raw. Chorizo con huevos is a popular dish that combines this piquant meat with scrambled eggs, which—if placed in a tortilla with salsa—makes a tasty breakfast burrito. One also can incorporate this Mexican staple into everything from Southwestern casseroles and stuffings, to chili, soups and dips, to quesadillas, omelets and tamales

Mexican chorizo commonly is made with ground pork, but beef, soy, kosher and venison varieties also are available.     1. Cacique pork chorizo 2. Beef chorizo by Jimenez  3. Reynaldo’s cured pork longaniza; longaniza is a name used in parts of central Mexico to describe a type of long chorizo that has a natural pork casing.  4. El Mexicano soy chorizo, or “soyrizo”  5. Food City’s mild loosely ground beef and pork chorizo