Oi Gente!!
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!
About this Caldo Verde recipe
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. In Brazil, as well as in Portugal, this dish is a must-have item on any menu during our Festas de São João, which highlight the celebration of the birth the Saint John the Baptist. This custom was introduced to us by the Portuguese during colonial times, and 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.
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 fell better about it.
Needless to say, this soup has a very special place in my heart! I love having it with tons of Portuguese olive oil on top and fresh crusty bread – it’s like 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 ingredients, plus some olive oil, and a little bread if you’d like for serving.
- garlic
- onion
- potatoes
- smoked pork sausage – In Brazil we use a specific kind of smoked pork sausage, linguiça calabresa, which you can find at Brazilian or Portuguese markets. Alternatively, you can substitute any smoked pork sausage you can find.
- collard greens – I never replace this, but, some people also use kale.
How to make caldo verde
Heat up some olive oil in a large stock pot, and saute the onions until they are soft.
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Then, add the sausage.
Let everything brown (but not too much) until it looks like this… then add the garlic and give it a little stir.
Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside.
Add the potatoes to the pan, and cover with water and let it cook until the potatoes are soft.
When the potatoes are soft, remove some of the potatoes and set them aside with the sausage.
Using an immersion blender, blend the remaining potatoes in the pot (including the water they were cooked in) – alternatively, you can skip this part altogether and just smash some of the potatoes in the pot. The goal is to have some potato chunks, and some creaminess, but not too much… kinda like this:
Add the sausage, and the potatoes back to the pot , then add the collard greens.
And we’re done!
Top it with some good olive oil, and eat it with crusty bread.
More collard greens recipes:
Couve a Mineira – Brazilian Collard Greens with Bacon
You may also like these other soup recipes:
Canja de Galinha – Brazilian Chicken and Rice Soup
Red Lentil Soup with Coconut Milk
Brazilian Sweet Corn Chowder Recipe
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Caldo Verde Recipe – Portuguese Green Soup
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.
Sounds like a great soup for the winter!
Yes, girl!! Soooo great!
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! You are reminding me it’s time I make it again!
Yes!! Definitely time to make it again! And a LOT of people use kale, so I ain’t mad at you ahahah 😛
Wow!!! This soup looks like it’s packed with flavor! I love the idea of smoked sausage inside too.
The sausage makes the dish because it adds that smokiness to the soup – it’s seriously amaaaazing!!
I love a good soup recipe during the winter time! This looks amazing!
Thank you, Andrea!
Yess!! I’m all for this. You had me when you added the sausage!
LOL! Yasssss… the sausage is everything!! Sooo delicious!
Five ingredients + comfort food…you can’t beat that! Looks yummy!
You know it, girl!!
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!
HA! That’s awesome!! So happy you guys loved it! Thanks, Jenni!
This soup has so much flavor! I loved how quick and easy it was to make too!
Yes!!! The secret is in the sausage, where all the bold flavors come from! So delicious!! So happy you loved it! Thank you, Christina!
I love brazilian cuisine and eu adorei esta receita! Very good!
Thank you for sharing it
Ahhhhhhh so cuuuute!!!! <3 Obrigada, Fiorenza!! So glad you loved the recipe xx
This is so unique but so delicious! It was a hit when we made it at our house!
That’s fantastic, Katie! Thanks!
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!
That’s so awesome, Jade! The sausage helps here as it’s the primary source of flavor in the soup – So happy you like it 🙂
This caldo verde recipe looks really scrumptious! I’m definitely going to need this Portuguese green soup especially now that you can still feel the coldness of the night.
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!
You had me at 5 ingredients and easy to make. This recipe will make a busy week much simpler with this easy to prepare weeknight meal.
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!
I was just thinking about some green soup for lunch and here I found your recipe. Making it right now. Thanks for sharing.
This was my first time making this soup! It was so comforting and warming on this chilly day!
So happy to hear!! This is one of my favorite soups ever!!!!!! Glad you liked xx
This looks super simple, yet still packed with flavor. Those are my favorite kind of recipes!
I always love soup recipes with greens. What a beautiful way to enjoy collard greens. Thank you
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 have got to try it!!
Yesssss!! Do try!!! It’s my fave!!!
That sausage caught my eye. It looks cooked perfectly. I think this would be the best cold weather soup.
This looks like such a comforting dish. I love that smokey flavor and adore collard greens – making this for my fam this week!
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.
Hi Jhon, sounds yummy!! So happy you guys liked the recipe!! Beijos xx