One Pot Pasta with Peppers and Pork

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 150 g pasta (maccheroncini) or other pasta with a short cooking time
• 250 g pork schnitzel
• 2 bell peppers, red
• 2 spring onions
• 1 onion(s)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 600 ml vegetable stock
• 100 ml red wine, dry
• 200 ml cream
• 4 tsp Ajvar, spicy
• 1 tbsp mustard, medium hot
• 4 tsp marjoram, dried
• 2 tsp fennel seeds, ground
• 2 tsp paprika powder, hot
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• 20 g lard for frying
• 100 g feta cheese
• e.g. fresh basil
• e.g. salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 25 minutes; Total time approx. 45 minutes

Wash the pork schnitzel, pat dry, flatten slightly if necessary, and then cut into strips across the grain. Wash the bell pepper, removing the stalk, core, and white inner membrane. Peel and halve the onion. Then cut the bell pepper and onion into strips, peel and press or finely chop the garlic. Wash the spring onions and cut into rings, separating the green parts from the white parts. Dice the feta cheese. Heat the lard in a large pan and brown the meat on all sides for about 3 minutes. Then remove the meat from the pan, season with pepper and salt, and set aside. In the remaining fat in the pan, brown the bell pepper, garlic, onion, and the white rings of the spring onions for about 4-5 minutes over medium heat. Add the mustard and paprika and stir in. Deglaze everything with red wine and simmer for about 2 minutes. Then top up with the vegetable stock, add the coriander powder and marjoram, and bring everything to a boil. Now add the raw pasta and cook uncovered for about 6-7 minutes, until the pasta is almost al dente. Stir more frequently towards the end, as most of the liquid will be absorbed by the pasta or will be cooked away. Now stir in the cream and ajvar, add the ground fennel seeds and the reserved meat, and simmer for another 2-3 minutes over medium heat, until the sauce has the desired consistency. Season with pepper and salt. Reduce the heat to low, add the diced feta cheese and the green rings of the spring onions, stir, and let the cheese melt briefly. Garnish with roughly torn fresh basil leaves before serving. Notes: If you don’t want any alcohol in your dish, use a little more vegetable stock (about half the amount of red wine) and add a little vinegar for the necessary bitterness. You can, of course, use neutral cooking oil instead of lard, but the lard adds a more hearty flavor.