Caldo Verde Recipe – Portuguese Green Soup

This Caldo Verde recipe is seriously the most delicious soup of all! It’s made with only 5 easy to find ingredients and peeling potatoes is as hard as this gets. This Portuguese green soup hits the spot and brings you all the warmth and comfort you need on a cool night. It’s comfort food at it’s very best!

A bowl of colorful Caldo Verde (Portuguese Green Soup) in a white and gray bowl

About this Caldo Verde recipe

Oi Gente!!

Portuguese Green Soup, or as we call it in Portuguese, Caldo Verde, is a smoky and hearty soup traditionally made with smoked sausage, potatoes and collard greens.

Caldo Verde, although extremely popular in Brazil, is actually a traditional Portuguese soup, from northern Portugal.

This dish is a must-have item on any menu during Festas de São João. This marks the birth the Saint John the Baptist, which is celebrated in both Brazil and Portugal.

This custom was introduced to us by the Portuguese during colonial times. For Catholic Brazilians, this is an opportunity to give thanks to St. John and other saints, as well as celebrate rural life through food, clothing and music.

A hand holds a spoon above a bowl of caldo verde

I truly miss going to Festas de São João… the neighborhood getting together, the costumes, the music and dancing, and of course, all the amazing food. And eating my mom’s caldo verde recipe is one way to feel better about it.

Needless to say, this soup has a very special place in my heart! I love enjoying it with tons of Portuguese olive oil on top and fresh crusty bread — it’s comfort food to me.

Caldo Verde is a tribute to my childhood and that of every other Brazilian I know, and every spoonful is a gift, packed with delicious flavors, and the fondest memories.

I hope you love it as much as I do!

Beijinhos xoxo

Bom Apetite!

Caldo Verde Ingredients

All you need to make this Caldo Verde recipe are these 5 easy to find, simple ingredients, plus some olive oil and a little bread, if you’d like, for serving.

  • Garlic — or Brazilian sofrito.
  • Onion — white or yellow onion work great in this recipe.
  • Potatoes — yellow or gold potatoes are my favorite. Be sure to peel them and evenly dice them, too!
  • Smoked pork sausage — in Brazil, we use a specific kind of smoked pork sausage, called linguiça calabresa, which you can find at Brazilian or Portuguese markets. Alternatively, you can substitute with Portuguese chorizo or with any smoked pork sausage you can find at the grocery store.
  • Collard greens — I never replace this, but some people also use kale.

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Here are the tools you’ll need to make this soup:

How to make Caldo Verde Portuguese Green Soup

Heat up some olive oil in a large stock pot, and saute the onions until they are soft.

Then, add the sausage and let it brown, stirring occasionally. After it browns add the garlic and give it a little stir.

Cooked sausage and onion in a pan

Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside.

Then, add the potatoes to the pan.

Cover the potatoes with water (make sure the water is no more than an inch or an inch and half over the potatoes), turn on the heat and let it cook until the potatoes are soft.

Diced potatoes in a large soup pan before cooking

When the potatoes are soft, use a slotted spoon to remove some of the potatoes from the pot, and set them aside with the sausage.

Use an immersion blender to blend the remaining potatoes in the pot with the water they were cooked in. Alternatively, you can just smash some of the potatoes in the pot with a spoon or a potato masher.

The goal is to have some potato chunks, and some creaminess, but not too much.

We’re looking for a velvety, luscious liquid, as opposed to a thick soup.

Blended potatoes in a pot

Add the sausage and the potatoes back to the pot and turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper, too.

Finally, add the collard greens.

See how they’re thinly sliced? THIS is the best way to do it.

Finely cut collard greens on top of potato mixture in a pot

And we’re done!

The collards don’t need to cook down, they just just needs to wilt. We want them bright green and to have a bite to them, as opposed to cooking them to a mush.

The final caldo verde soup in a pot

Ladle the hot soup into bowls and drizzle with some good olive oil.

Eat it with crusty bread for some extra crunch!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you store caldo verde soup?

Store in airtight container in the fridge for 5 or so days…

Can I freeze this soup?

You can, but I’d rather you not. Freezing cooked potatoes changes their texture, but that’s a personal preference…

A bowl of Portuguese green soup in a white and grey bowl next to two spoons on a tabletop

Tips and tricks to the best caldo verde:

  • Use the right ingredients and prepare them properly! Dice your potatoes evenly so they cook evenly. Slice the collards into ribbons so their texture is right in the final soup.
  • No need for chicken stock or broth—the flavors come from the sausage, which is why we sautee them first and cook the potatoes in the same pot so they retain the flavors.
  • Season to taste. Give the soup a taste before adding the collards and add salt and pepper, as necessary.
  • Serve with olive oil and crusty bread. This is a total comfort food move!

More collard greens recipes:

You may also like these other soup recipes:


A bowl of Portuguese green soup in a white and grey bowl next to two spoons on a tabletop
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5 from 103 votes

Caldo Verde Recipe – Portuguese Green Soup

This caldo verde recipe is seriously the most delicious soup of all! It's made with only 5 easy to find ingredients and peeling potatoes is as hard as this gets. This Portuguese green soup hits the spot and brings you all the warmth and comfort you need on a cool night. It's comfort food at it's very best!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Aline Shaw

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs of yellow potatoes peeled and diced into about an inch cubes
  • 1 13oz Smoked sausage sliced
  • 1 onion, diced about a cup
  • 1 tablespoons Brazilian sofrito or 4 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1-2 bunches of collard greens stemmed and cut thin
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbsp of olive oil plus more to serve

Instructions

  • On stovetop, heat up a 5.5 quart pan or large stock pot over medium to high heat and add the 2 Tbsp of olive oil.
  • Add the onions, and cook until transparent, about 2 mins.
  • Add the sausage, and cook until lightly browned, 5 mins.
  • Add the garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 2 mins.
  • Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside in a bowl.
  • Add the potatoes to the stock pot, season with salt and cover with water (about 7 cups). Let it cook until potatoes are soft.
  • When the potatoes are fully cooked, remove half of the potatoes from the pot and set them aside with the sausage.
  • Using an immersion blender blend the other half of the potatoes in the stock pot with the water they cooked in.
  • Return the sausage and and the potatoes to the stock pot, season with salt and pepper, stir.
  • Add the collard greens, stir.
  • Drizzle with olive oil and serve with bread.

Bom Apetite!!

    Did you make this recipe? Show me how it turned out! Snap a photo and share with me on Instagram tagging @aline_shaw!

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    40 Comments

    1. 5 stars
      caldo verde is one of my all time fave soups – whenever I travel to Newark where we have a big Portuguese population I make sure I get a bowl – I only tried to make it myself once but I used kale – anyway a green is a green right! Your recipe is great – thank you!

    2. 5 stars
      I made this for dinner the other night and it was amazing! My husband was really skeptical when I told him what it was, but he ate three helpings! We are so in love with this soup!

    3. 5 stars
      I’ve never been a big fan of collard greens but this soup has made a convert of me. Well, at least I will happily eat it in this soup!

    4. 5 stars
      This caldo verde recipe was really scrumptious! I’m definitely going to need this Portuguese green soup especially now that you can still feel the coldness of the night.

    5. 5 stars
      Oh wow… I had never heard of this soup before, but with all the deliciousness in here, I had to try it. It is so delicious, hearty, and helps with the healthy kick I am on. Such a great and easy soup for weeknight dinners this season!

    6. 5 stars
      You had me at 5 ingredients and easy to make. This recipe makes a busy week much simpler with this easy to prepare weeknight meal.

    7. 5 stars
      I love how simple yet flavorful this soup is! It’s so perfectly cozy for these chilly months. Can’t wait to make it again!

    8. 5 stars
      I was just thinking about some green soup for lunch and here I found your recipe. Making it right now. Thanks for sharing.

    9. 5 stars
      Can you believe that I have never tried collard greens?? It is probably because it is not a flavour you see in Canada much. Now that I moved to the US, I tried it and loved it!! Love this soup! Thanks

    10. 5 stars
      This looks like such a comforting dish. I love that smokey flavor and adore collard greens – making this for my fam this week!

    11. 5 stars
      This CALDO VERDE looks so appetizing! I tried this with different sausages and it also tastes great, my wife loves this. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

    12. 5 stars
      This soup is SO comforting and delicious! I look forward to making it again when the weather cools off some this fall…

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