Our partner’s recipe: Caldo Verde, a Portuguese kale soup

Caldo Verde is a very popular and traditional Portuguese/Azorean soup. This is a family recipe that has been passed down for generations in the family of Carissa Koral, Sales Development Manager at Québec City Business Destination. In the cold and harsh winters, her grandmother (and generations prior) did not have a lot of resources, but they could always find some kale, potatoes, onions and garlic growing in the garden and a little bit of meat for flavour.

They would make this soup in large batches and feed their family. This soup is thick and filling and will warm you up on a cold winter day. Each generation has a different way to prepare it. Carissa’s grandmother likes it very salty. Her mother adds a bit of Pimenta, which is a Portuguese hot sauce. Carissa likes to add a very small pinch of cinnamon just at the end (she swears by this!). You can add as many additional ingredients as you like (beans, pasta, different meats, more vegetables, etc.), but the heart of the dish is just a simple, filling and warm soup to enjoy with your family.

Ingredients

¼ cup olive oil
1 diced yellow onion
2 or 3 garlic cloves (or more – you can’t mess it up if you add more garlic)
1 lb. kale cut chiffonade (in very fine thin shreds – remove ribs and tough parts of kale, use the green leaf parts only)
6 potatoes peeled and diced
1 chouriço link sliced into ¼-inch round (if you can’t find chouriço, you can use linguiça, Spanish chorizo, or any type of spicy sausage)
8 cups water (or half chicken stock and half water)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add chouriço and cook the meat for 3-5 minutes. Remove the chouriço with a spoon and set aside.
Add the diced onions to the soup pot and add some salt and pepper to cook until soften and translucent (about 3 minutes). Add garlic to the pot and sauté for another couple minutes.
Add the diced potatoes and cover with water (or chicken broth if using). Bring the soup to a boil and continue to boil until the potatoes are soft and tender (about 10-20 minutes).
Mash the potatoes in the pot so that the soup thickens and there are no lumps left (with a blender foot or even a simple potato masher).
Add kale and chouriço into the pot. Bring it back up to a boil, then cook for another 10 minutes.
Add more salt and pepper to taste.