Caldo Verde is a traditional Portuguese soup that’s made in one pot. And, it takes about half an hour to cook. It’s filling, spicy, and great for cold weather. The usual way to make this is with kale and linguiça, which is a garlicky pork Portuguese sausage. Except, I don’t like kale. Some use collard greens instead, or cabbage. I didn’t have cabbage, but I did have spinach. As far as I’m concerned, that works! It’s still a bitterish green and it takes less time to cook too.
This is good right away, but like many soups, it’s even better after it sits for a day or two. I’ve cut the recipe from six servings to about 2 or 3, depending on how hungry you are.
It does come with a few minor cooking decisions. You can cut the greens up roughly, or chop everything up into fine ribbons. And, you can either purée the soup, or leave it as is. I went with rough chopping and skipped the purée this time, mostly because I was feeling lazy. The last thing I made was pizza and I somehow got the tomato sauce everywhere: the stove, the floor, the cabinets, the sink. I’ve had enough cleanup to last me for a while, so I didn’t want to clean one extra thing (even a stick blender).
Also, if you can’t find the Portuguese sausage, any other garlicky sausage will do just fine.
Quick Caldo Verde Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tsp butter
- 4-5 oz garlicky pork sausage, sliced (about a four inch piece)
- 1 small onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 clove garlic, sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2-3 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 C chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cup fresh spinach, washed and roughly chopped
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a Dutch oven.
- Add the sausage and brown for 5 minutes.
- Remove the sausage and set aside.
- Add the onions and the garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add half the olive oil as necessary to keep the veggies from drying out.
- Add the chicken broth and the potatoes.
- Raise the heat to medium-high and bring the soup to a boil.
- Turn the heat down and let the soup simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the potatoes are soft.
- Add the spinach and the cooked sausage and cook for a minute or two until the spinach wilts.
- Add the second teaspoon of olive oil and serve.
Caldo Verde Soup Substitutions and Variations
- Use a mixture of baking potatoes (Russet) and Yukon Gold potatoes for different textures
- If you don’t have the linguiça, try chorizo or andouille, merguez, or any garlicky sausage you have, such as merguez; even pepperoni in a pinch
- Try it with cabbage (or kale) if you prefer
- Skip the sausage entirely, replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth and make it vegetarian. If you want it vegan, use olive oil instead of butter.
More Sausage Recipes
Quick Creole Cabbage and Sausage
Fragrant with creole spices and mustard for a spicy bite, this meal is ready in fifteen minutes. Recipes for the mustard and spice mixture linked in the post.
Lamb Merguez Sausage with Rice and Vegetables
A whole meal all by itself. The spicy lamb sausage is mellowed by carrots, eggplant, and cinnamon.
One Pot Polish Sausage and Cabbage with Potatoes
This dish only requires a few basic ingredients. However, it’s packed with flavor from rich sausage, braised cabbage, and sweet carrots. One pot!