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Caldo Verde

Serves 4 to 6 Soup meat, Soups

Caldo Verde

Caldo Verde hails from the verdant region of Minho in northern Portugal, where it has been a staple on family tables for generations. This is the dish of choice when the evenings grow cooler, offering comfort and warmth in every spoonful. It's a home-cooked tradition, crafted with a generous hand for olive oil and a relaxed attitude towards precise measurements—reflecting the Portuguese way of cooking from the heart.

Expect a rich, velvety texture from the blend of waxy potatoes and kale, punctuated by the smoky depth of chouriço de carne. The soup's simplicity allows each ingredient to shine, creating a harmonious balance that feels like a warm embrace. Seasoned with sea salt and black pepper, it’s a dish that invites savoring, spoon by spoon, until the bowl is blissfully empty.

Ingredients

  • 500 gcouve galega kale — stems removed and shredded into hair-fine ribbons
  • 6waxy potatoes — peeled and quartered
  • 1onion — roughly chopped
  • 3 clovesgarlic — sliced
  • 180 gchouriço de carne — cut into thin coins
  • 120 mlextra virgin olive oil — half for the pot, half to finish
  • 1.5 Lwater
  • to tasteblack pepper
  • to tastefine sea salt

Method

  1. Peel and roughly chop the 6 waxy potatoes, 1 onion, and 3 cloves of garlic. Place them in a large pot with 1.5 L of water and a generous pinch of fine sea salt. Bring the pot to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Cook until the potatoes are so tender they fall apart with the touch of a spoon, indicating they are ready to be blended.
  2. Remove the pot from heat and use an immersion blender to blend the potato mixture until smooth. Drizzle in 60 ml of extra virgin olive oil while blending to create a creamy texture and enhance the flavor. The soup should be velvety and without any lumps.
  3. Slice the 180 g chouriço de carne into thin coins. Return the pot to low heat and add the chouriço slices to the soup. Allow them to poach for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chouriço releases its fat and paprika, giving the broth a rich, reddish hue. Carefully lift the chouriço out with a slotted spoon and keep them warm on a separate plate.
  4. Take the 500 g of couve galega kale and roll the leaves tightly. Slice them as finely as possible into hair-thin ribbons. Add these ribbons to the barely simmering soup. Cook for three to four minutes, just until the kale turns a vibrant green and retains a slight bite.
  5. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with fine sea salt and black pepper to your preference. Ladle the soup into bowls, ensuring each serving is rich and smooth. Lay the warm chouriço coins on top of each bowl, drizzle with a thread of raw extra virgin olive oil, and serve immediately with broa still warm from the oven.
Cover of Authentic Portuguese Cuisine
From the cookbook

Authentic Portuguese Cuisine

This recipe is from Authentic Portuguese Cuisine by Yassine Sbiti — the Portuguese volume in the ComidaTime International Cuisines series.

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