What, a paella made with pasta?! We know, but wait, it gets better – Freedom Farms’ delicious new smoked pork chorizo features too.

Much of the deli meat − cured products such as salami, chorizo and the like − sold in New Zealand is made from imported ingredients, and under current laws, there’s no requirement for this to be disclosed on the packaging. The Consumers’ Right to Know (Country of Origin of Food) Bill proposes to change that (after many public submissions, the select committee has returned cured pork products to the list of foods that will be covered by the law), but in the meantime, it pays to select your meaty snacks carefully if you want to ensure they were ethically produced.

Thankfully, Freedom Farms has made this easier with the addition of a smoked pork chorizo to its range, which is made from fresh New Zealand pork farmed without cages, crates or pens. It’s blended with plenty of sweet and smoky Spanish paprika and cured then naturally smoked. As the warmer weather approaches, it’s perfect sizzled on the barbecue with seafood, or add it to a tapas plate or pasta salad.

This weekend, why not go full Español and whip up food writer Fiona Smith’s delicious fideuà with your Freedom Farms smoked pork chorizo – it’s a Valencian take on paella, using pasta or noodles instead of rice. Fiona says: “As with paella, you need to keep a close eye on the heat and not disturb the mixture after you’ve added the stock – you want the mixture to form a crust on the base, but not to burn. I do push a little aside if I think it’s getting too brown, just to check. The pasta you use needs to have about a six-minute cooking time. This is also great with clams added at the same time as the peas.”

CHORIZO & PEA FIDEUA

Recipe by Fiona Smith / Serves 4

3 tablespoons olive oil

300g Freedom Farms Smoked Pork Chorizo (3 chorizo − 1½ packs), diced

1 red onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

400g can chopped tomatoes in juice

50ml dry white wine

200g spaghettini or angel hair pasta, broken into short lengths

400ml good-quality chicken or vegetable stock

150g peas

handful of flat-leaf parsley

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Heat the oil in a 26cm paella pan or other wide, thin-based pan over medium heat, then add the chorizo, onion and garlic and cook over medium heat until browning and softened − about 5 minutes. Stir in the paprika and cook for 1 minute, then add the tomatoes and wine, turn up the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Stir in the pasta to coat well with the tomato mix and spread over the pan to an even layer. Carefully pour over the stock. Simmer vigorously for 10 minutes then scatter over the peas pushing them into the pasta but not disturbing it. Cook for about 5 minutes. You can add more stock if the pan is looking very dry, but you do not want it to be soupy.

Take off the heat, cover and rest for 10 minutes, then scatter over the parsley and serve with wedges of lemon.