noun

chorizo

chuh-REE-zoh/tʃəˈriːzoʊ/

A spiced pork sausage used in Spanish and Mexican cooking.

Thick slices of cured chorizo reveal coarse pork and pale flecks of fat.

Close food illustration of a paprika-red cured Spanish chorizo sausage on a small worn wooden chopping board, its end sliced into three thick rounds revealing coarse pork and creamy white fat flecks. A plain kitchen knife rests alongside, with a tiny pinch of red spice. The sausage is the dominant subject. No packaging or lettering.

Etymology

Latin salsicia meant “sausage” and came from a word meaning “seasoned with salt.” That ancestry highlights seasoning, while chorizo names the particular spiced pork sausage.

In context

Gordon Ramsay0:26

i'm talking about the porco preto this is the black pig chorizo uh incredible the flavor is unique

Gordon Ramsay's Chorizo Omelette Recipe

More examples

She slices cured Spanish chorizo for the platter.
Fresh Mexican chorizo cooks with the potatoes.
The sandwich contains smoky chorizo.

Forms

chorizo · chorizos

Similar words

sausage: Sausage is the broader category; chorizo is a spiced variety associated with Spanish and Mexican cooking.