Portuguese Caldo Verde-Style Soup

This easy Portuguese Caldo Verde-Style Soup is packed with potatoes, kale, and smoked kielbasa in a delicious broth. It’s comforting, filling, and full of amazing flavor!

this recipe

In Portuguese, Caldo Verde means “green broth” or “green soup.” The green comes from the leafy greens in the broth (in this case, kale). And let me tell you…this is such an awesomely delicious way to eat some kale!

Now, before we go any further, I need to say one thing.

I am not Portuguese, like not even a little bit, and so I am not claiming, in any way, that this is an authentic Caldo Verde recipe. In fact, I’ll straight up say that it’s definitely not, which is why I called it Caldo Verde-Style Soup.

Sometimes you just don’t have access to specialty/regional ingredients, or maybe you don’t care for a particular ingredient, so you make do with what you can get or what you like!

So let’s just say this is a Polish-American-Portuguese fusion soup that is very similar to traditional Caldo Verde. It’s the way I like to make it, and it’s super yummy, and I really hope you try it because it’s SO GOOD!

This recipe covers all the basics of Caldo Verde: potatoes, greens, broth, and smoked sausage. Here’s how my version is a little different:

1. The potatoes. In the original, the potatoes are mashed entirely or almost entirely to make the soup thicker and creamier. I prefer some chunks of potato and a more brothy soup, so I crush less than half of the potatoes.
2. The greens. Some recipes say that collard greens are what should be used. I can’t always get them (and honestly, I don’t love them anyway), so I use kale instead.
3. The sausage. Portuguese chaurico (not Spanish chorizo, which is different) or linguica are what would normally be used, but I usually can’t get those either, so I use smoked kielbasa.

The bottom line: If you’re looking for a tasty and filling soup recipe to warm you up on these cold winter days, you just found it!

Ingredients you need:

• Olive oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Red pepper flakes (optional)
• Dry sherry
• Roasted chicken base (such as Better Than Bouillon (#notsponsored))
• Water
• Potatoes (I use Yukon Gold)
• Smoked kielbasa
• Fresh kale

Here’s a look at how to make Portuguese Caldo Verde-Style Soup:

Tips & Tidbits:

• Use dry sherry rather than a sweet sherry. If you don’t have sherry, you can use madeira or a drier white wine such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc.
• If you’re not into cooking with wine, just leave it out.
• The red pepper flakes add a nice little amount of warmth to the soup (the ¼ teaspoon doesn’t make it very hot/spicy at all). Add less, more, or none at all depending on the heat level you prefer.
• I use low-sodium roasted chicken base in this recipe because the smoked kielbasa can sometimes be on the salty side. In fact, don’t add any salt until you taste the soup at the very end of cooking, because you may not need any at all.
• You can use 6 cups of your favorite chicken broth instead of the roasted chicken base and water (homemade chicken bone broth would be totally awesome!). When I don’t have homemade, I prefer using roasted chicken base over canned or boxed broth because I think it has more flavor.
• Make sure to remove the thick stems from the kale, as they can be very tough, even when cooked. To cut down on prep time, use bagged stemmed, chopped and washed kale (this is what I use most of the time!).
• Frozen chopped kale also works. Use about 2 cups (the 4 cups of fresh kale will cook down to about 2 cups) or however much you want in your soup.
• This soup is excellent the day you make it, but it’s also even better the next day. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days.
• You can freeze this soup, but just know that the potatoes will probably be just a little more mushy once you thaw it and reheat it.

Serve up your soup with some crusty bread or a salad (or both!) for a winner of a dinner or lunch!

I hope you try this recipe for Portuguese Caldo Verde-Style Soup and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!

• Sausage, Potato and Kale Soup (Zuppa Toscana)
• Easy Homemade French Onion Soup
• Broccoli, Cauliflower and Cheese Soup
• Italian Wedding Soup
• Cheesy Potato Soup With Crispy Potato Skins

Recipe adapted from Cuisine At Home.