Caldo Verde: Portugal's Green Soup, the Way We Make It in Brazil

Caldo verde — silky potato soup with ribbons of collard greens and slices of smoked sausage. A Portuguese-Brazilian classic, naturally gluten-free.

Caldo verde arrived in Brazil with the Portuguese and never left. In the cold months of the South, and on winter nights in São Paulo when the temperature drops to a shocking fifty degrees, it is what people crave: a smooth potato broth, almost creamy without a drop of cream, shot through with thin ribbons of couve — collard greens — and slices of smoked linguiça.

It is thickened by nothing but potato. There is no roux and no bread in the pot, which is one of the reasons Portuguese and Brazilian cooking is such a comfortable place to live without gluten.

The only thing to check is the sausage. Many smoked sausages contain wheat fillers or gluten-based flavourings; a good butcher or a labelled brand solves it.

PREP 15 min

TOTAL 45 min

SERVINGS 6

DIFFICULTY easy

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more to finish

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed

• 6 cups water or gluten-free chicken stock

• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt

• 8 ounces gluten-free smoked linguiça, chouriço or kielbasa, sliced into thin rounds

• 1 bunch collard greens (about 8 ounces), stems removed

• Freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. Soften. Warm the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic until soft and translucent, about 6 minutes, without browning.

   
   

2. Simmer the potatoes. Add the potatoes, water and salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes fall apart when pressed.

   
   

3. Blend. Blend the soup with an immersion blender (or in batches in a blender) until completely smooth and velvety.

   
   

4. Sausage and greens. While the potatoes cook, fry the sausage slices in a dry skillet until browned and set aside. Stack the collard leaves, roll them tightly like a cigar, and slice as thinly as you possibly can — almost thread-like.

   
   

5. Finish. Return the soup to a simmer, add the greens and cook for just 3 to 4 minutes so they stay bright. Add most of the sausage. Serve in bowls with the remaining sausage on top, a generous thread of olive oil, and pepper.

NOTES

The greens: The thinner the ribbons, the better the soup. In Portugal it is sold pre-shredded for exactly this purpose. Kale works if you cannot find collards.

The sausage: Check the label or ask the butcher — this is the one ingredient that commonly hides gluten.

Vegetarian: Skip the sausage and finish with smoked paprika bloomed in olive oil for the same smoky note.