Benefits of Pork Chorizo?

On Cinco de Mayo our local supermarket had El Mexicano Pork Chorizo for $1.50 each, so, almost having taken the sobriquet of “Snausage Guy” instead of “Asparagus Pee Guy,” I couldn’t resist.

I always get this mixed up with Linguica, which I definitely prefer, and I was a little surprised when I went to cook it that the casing was clear plastic that you actually had to remove.

The plot thickened when I read the ingredients list:

  • Pork Salivary Glands
  • Pork Lymph Nodes
  • Fat (cheek)
  • Short list of spices (paprika, chile, garlic, sodium nitrate)

But see, I have this theory of nutrition that says there are trace elements and unique proteins in almost everything, so, salivary glands and cheek fat, I mean, what the heck – what if there’s something in there that prevents cancer or West Nile in the same way that vitamin C prevents scurvy and D prevents rickets?

Of course, it’s not doing my heartburn or gout any good (hey, I’m old, so lay off), but I like it a lot better than this guy: Chorizo Crawl on Chowhound.