Choripan is a traditional Argentinean appetizer or snack consisting of grilled chorizo on bread topped with chimichurri sauce. This flavorful chorizo sandwich, also called chori for short, is popular in many Latin American countries and is a must have for an asado or BBQ. Choripanes or chorizo style hot dogs make a great appetizer or bite to snack while you are waiting for the main meal to be ready on the grill.
There’s nothing better when you are in that state of semi-starvation at a barbecue, and exposed to all these delicious grilling smells, than to snack on a bite of baguette stuffed with grilled chorizo and topped with some chimichurri sauce. Of course, this chorizo hot dog can be served as delicious main meal. I like to think of choripan as the adult version of the hot dog – especially for those who love spicy flavors.
Receta del Choripan en Español
Choripan is a traditional Argentinean street food or BBQ style sandwich made with grilled chorizo and chimichurri sauce.
Ingredients
- 1-2 pork or beef chorizo sausages per person for a main dish or 1 chorizo sausage for 2-3 people for an appetizer or snack while waiting for the main meal
- Baguette or hot dog buns
- ½ bunch of parsley, about ½ cup finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- ½ cup finely diced or minced green onions
- 1 small red chili pepper (red Fresno or red Korean), deveined, seeds removed and finely diced ( can be replaced with 1-2 teaspoons of chili pepper flakes) – adjust more or less based on your preference and heat tolerance
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup oil (I prefer to use olive oil even though it's not considered 100% traditional Argentinean)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Tomato and onion curtido salsa or just plain onion curtido or pickled red onions, about 1-2 tablespoons per person
- Guacamole – optional
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl and mix well. Can be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge until ready to use.
- Poke a few holes in the chorizo sausages and place on a hot grill until fully cooked (if not cooked) or until warm if fully cooked. You can cut the chorizo in half lengthwise or leave it whole, sometimes they are cut in half and added back to the grill for a few minutes before serving.
- Cut the baguette or French rolls lengthwise and place (inside down) on the grill to lightly toast.
- Place a tablespoon or more of chimichurri salsa on the baguette or hot dog bun, spread and then add the chorizo sausage. Top with additional chimichurri, tomato and onion curtido salsa, and guacamole.
- For bite size or smaller snacks, cut the chorizo and the bread into smaller pieces and serve with chimichurri and additional toppings.
Notes
For a vegetarian version, you can make this using your favorite veggie sausage.
Chimichurri sauce is a must have for any choripan recipe; the most basic version of this popular Latin sandwich is bread, grilled chorizo and chimichurri salsa. I also like serve them with onion curtido or pickled red onions or an onion and tomato curtido, a type of fresh salsa where the onion and tomato are marinated in a lime juice cilantro mix.
I am huge fan of eating everything with avocados or guacamole, so for Tex-Mex or Mexican twist to this South American hot dog, I recommend adding guacamole as another topping. When you combine grilled chorizo on bread with chimichurri, pickled red onions and guacamole you get the the ultimate Latin hot dog.
There are many types of chorizo, the best ones for choripan are the ones that come in casings and either soft or semi-soft. The hard cured Spanish chorizo isn’t suitable as it is too hard. If you have access to a store that sells South American grocery products, you can also use longaniza. These days you can find chorizo in most US grocery stores, but in case you can’t find it you can also use those gourmet style sausages that are popular now. Or use good old regular hot dog sausages if you can’t find anything else.
Of course, if I have vegetarian guests for a BBQ I like to make sure that I have some veggie sausages on hand – the flavor of the toppings will result in a delicious combination that even non-vegetarians will enjoy. Baguette style bread is ideal for choripan, I like to use demi-baguettes, but good quality hot dog buns, French rolls, or even sandwich bread will work fine.
Step by step preparation photos for choripan or chorizo hot dog with chimichurri sauce
Henry says
July 14, 2014 at 4:28 pmThat Chorizo Hot Dog is simply TO DIE FOR!!! I will have a good reason to try this out buying some Chorizo. Hell can even try this with some Caribbean Green Seasoning too to add some variations.