Caldo Verde
Caldo verde, green broth, is one of the most popular dishes from Portugal. Caldo Gallego, Galician broth, is one of the most popular dishes from Galicia. These soups are way more than simple broths. They are really easy to pull together, and they are super comforting. For a more in depth description, please visit https://thought4food.life/caldo-verde
Ingredients
- Olive Oil
- 8 oz Smoked Kielbasa sliced into rounds
- 1 Medium Onion (6-8 oz) diced
- 2-3 Cloves of Garlic (15 grams) minced
- 4 cups Chicken Broth
- 8 oz Turnip root or Potato chopped, 3/4" chunks
- 6 oz Greens (Turnip, Kale, Chard, etc) roughly chopped
- 1 15 oz can white beans such as cannellini optional
Instructions
- Heat a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and stir in some olive oil. A tablespoon is probably enough. You want to make the sausage and the pot bottom glisten, but you don't want a pool of oil.
- Arrange the sausage slices in a single layer, so one side of the sausage receives direct heat. Do not immediately stir. Allow the one side of the sausage to brown, while the fat in the sausage renders out. You can peek on the progress of a single slice. Expect 4-5 minutes. Optionally, you can stir, flipping the sausages, and brown the other side, but it's not totally necessary.
- Add the onions to the pot along with a pinch of salt (about 1 tsp). Stir. If the onions glisten, then there is enough fat. If they appear dry, add another splash of olive oil. Continue to sauté, stiring frequently, until the onions are soft and translucent. Expect 4-5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, stir and sauté for one more minute.
- If a fond (browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pot) has developed, start with a good splash of the broth to deglaze the pot, scraping with a wooden spatula.
- Add the remaining stock, roots and greens to the pot. If you are using white beans, add them at this point as well. Turn the heat on high until it boils. Turn down to a simmer and let simmer for 15-20 minutes.
Notes
This recipe is very flexible with respect to the roots and greens. It is one of my favorite ways of using turnips with their greens. But for the root you can use potatoes, rutabagas, or radishes. For the greens, kale, collards, turnip greens and the like will also work.
Optionally, you can add a can of white beans such as cannellini with the broth, roots and greens. This is traditional in caldo Gallego more than caldo verde.
Another option, to thicken the broth: Take a ladle full of soup, with a some of all of the ingredients, especially the root vegetable and beans, and put into a wide mouthed pint sized mason jar, and then blitz it with an immersion blender. Stir that back into the broth. Yum!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!