Caldo Verde Recipe (Portuguese Green Soup) Recipe
This Portuguese soup called Caldo Verde has a luscious creamy potato base, with collard green ribbons, and smoked sausage. A delicious one-pot meal that is vegan-adaptable!
How to Make the Best Caldo Verde Recipe (Portuguese Green Soup)
Caldo Verde, which translates to “green soup,” is one of Portugal’s most beloved comfort foods. This hearty, rustic soup combines silky puréed potatoes with ribbons of tender collard greens and slices of smoky sausage. It’s the kind of soul-warming dish that has been passed down through generations of Portuguese families and is now enjoyed around the world.
What makes this soup special is its simplicity and depth of flavor. The potatoes create a creamy, velvety base without any added cream, while the collard greens provide a slightly bitter, earthy contrast. The star of the show is the smoked sausage—traditionally linguiça or chouriço—which infuses the entire pot with rich, smoky notes. A drizzle of good olive oil before serving adds a fruity finish that ties everything together.
This is a wonderfully adaptable recipe that works beautifully for weeknight dinners or as part of a larger spread. It reheats exceptionally well and actually tastes even better the next day as the flavors continue to meld. For a vegan version, simply swap in plant-based sausage and vegetable broth—you’ll still get all the comfort without any compromise on taste.
Caldo Verde Recipe (Portuguese Green Soup)
This Portuguese soup called Caldo Verde has a luscious creamy potato base, with collard green ribbons, and smoked sausage. A delicious one-pot meal that is vegan-adaptable!
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
Optional
Instructions
Prepare the Greens
- Cut the stems out of the collard greens, then cut in strips by stacking about 3 leaves and rolling up into 'cigars' then slicing them thin into ribbons. Set aside.
Cook the Soup
- Sauté the sausage in a heavy bottom stock pot. Set aside.
- In the same pot, without cleaning, add onion and garlic, sautéing until tender. Add broth, potatoes, and salt, then cook until tender.
- Add about 1/3 of the sausage slices into the soup. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup just until mostly smooth or to desired consistency. Try not to over blend, as this can cause some potatoes to become gummy.
- Add the greens and simmer until greens are tender, about 10 minutes.
- Add the remaining sausage and warm for a few minutes. Add more broth for desired consistency.
Finish and Serve
- Adjust salt, pepper, and lemon if using.
- Drizzle individual bowls with olive oil, and optional pinch of Aleppo pepper. To richen it up you can also add a bit of cream to each dish.
Notes
- Do not use raw Mexican chorizo—use smoked, cured sausages only.
- For a vegan version, use plant-based sausage and vegetable broth.
- Be careful not to over-blend the potatoes as they can become gummy.
