A Fantastic Portuguese Caldo Verde Recipe
Warming, luscious and perfect for a chilly night (or any night, if you’re me), this is a brilliant interpretation of meat and potatoes that is a hallmark dish for Portugal – a true essential recipe to know if you’re interested in classic Portuguese cooking. This is my version, a reverent bow-down to the original, but with just a few method tweaks (and a topping suggestion or two of my own) to maximize the impact of each and every ingredient. Served with pieces of buttery cornbread, this is one iconic bowl that you’ll want to make again and again.Â
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed
- 11 to 12 ounces Portuguese Linguica sausage, sliced into very thin rounds (Spanish style chorizo can be subbed)
- 1 small to medium yellow onion, diced
- 24 ounces gold potatoes
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- 8 cups chopped flat leaf kale (Tuscan/lacinato) or collard greens, or to taste
- Salt and pepper, as needed
- 32 ounces chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons chicken stock concentrate
Instructions
- Add two tablespoons of the olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until it’s nicely browned and much of the fat has rendered. Transfer the sausage to a plate/bowl for now and leave the drippings in the pot.
- Add the onion, potatoes, garlic, and half of the greens to the pot. Season with 1.5 teaspoons salt and lots of black pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add the stock, 2 cups of water, and the stock concentrate. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the potatoes are fork tender; about 15 minutes.
- Using a handheld blender or upright blender, blend the soup until nice and smooth. Pour it back into the pot if necessary. Add the remaining kale into the pot and simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes. Taste and season generously with more salt (it will likely need it).
- Serve hot with big pieces of cornbread, the crispy sausage, and a drizzle of olive oil. As a nod to Portugal, I also like to top my bowls of Caldo Verde with sliced olives and some cilantro, but that’s not so traditional. Enjoy!