Caldo verde recipe: northern Portugal’s kale and potato soup
Floury potatoes, olive oil and greens sliced almost as thin as thread: the Minho soup that Porto eats at São João, with the timing that keeps it bright green.
This caldo verde recipe makes the green soup of northern Portugal the way the Minho does: a smooth potato and onion broth enriched with olive oil, and Portuguese cabbage cut into ribbons so fine that it cooks in four minutes and stays bright green.
Born as a farmhouse soup in the Minho, caldo verde is now eaten all over Portugal at weddings, birthdays and popular festivals; in Porto, a bowl of it with grilled sardines and broa cornbread is part of the São João celebrations every June. In 2011 a public vote named it one of the Seven Wonders of Portuguese Gastronomy. This Amuse Kitchen caldo verde recipe keeps the three things the tradition insists on: floury potatoes, very thin greens and a good chouriço. In Porto you will also find it at the Mercado do Bolhão, one of the stops in our guide to what to eat in Porto.
Ingredients
Caldo verde is only as good as the knife work: the thinner the greens, the greener the soup.
- 1 kg floury potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 large onion (about 200 g), chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1.8 litres water
- 2 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
- 100 ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
- 250 g couve-galega (Portuguese cabbage), or collard greens or kale
- 150 g chouriço, sliced 5 mm thick
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Broa or other cornbread, to serve
Method
- Put the potatoes, onion, garlic, water, salt and half the olive oil in a large pan. Bring to the boil and simmer, half covered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the potatoes fall apart when pressed. Floury potatoes release the starch that thickens the soup without cream.
- Meanwhile, strip the stems from the cabbage, stack the leaves, roll them tightly like a cigar and slice as thinly as you can, 1 to 2 mm. Fine ribbons cook in minutes and are the signature of any good caldo verde recipe.
- Fry the chouriço in a dry frying pan for 2 minutes a side, until the edges crisp and it releases its red fat. Set aside.
- Blend the potato base with a stick blender until completely smooth. The olive oil emulsifies with the potato starch, which gives the soup body and a velvety finish.
- Bring the soup back to a simmer, add the cabbage and cook uncovered for 4 to 5 minutes, just until tender. Keep the lid off and do not overcook, or the greens turn olive-drab and taste of sulphur.
- Off the heat, stir in the remaining olive oil, then adjust the salt and add pepper. Raw oil added at the end keeps its fruity aroma.
- Ladle into warm bowls, top each with a few slices of chouriço and a thread of olive oil, and serve with broa.
Serving it the São João way
For a festival-style meal, serve small bowls next to grilled sardines laid on slices of broa, with a jug of chilled vinho verde. A spoonful of the red chouriço fat on each bowl adds smokiness; for a vegetarian version, leave out the sausage and finish with a little more olive oil.
Caldo verde recipe FAQ
What can I use instead of couve-galega? Collard greens are the closest match; kale or cavolo nero also work if you cut them just as finely. Savoy cabbage gives a softer, sweeter soup.
Can I make caldo verde ahead? Cook and blend the potato base up to three days ahead and keep it in the fridge. Add the freshly cut greens only when you reheat it, so they stay green.
Can I freeze caldo verde? Freeze the base without the cabbage for up to three months. Frozen with the greens, the soup loses its colour and the ribbons turn limp.
