Caldo Verde is one of Portugal's most famous traditional soups, translating literally to 'green broth'. Originally made with dark green galega cabbage, this version uses kale, a close relative. With added cannellini beans and garlic toast croutons, this version makes for a heartier meal.
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90 grams
Diced Chorizo
(Contains Milk)
1 unit(s)
Onion
3 unit(s)
Garlic Clove
1 unit(s)
Baking Potato
1 sachet(s)
Smoked Paprika
15 grams
Chicken Broth Paste
10 grams
Chicken Stock Paste
½ unit(s)
Lemon
100 grams
Chopped Kale
1 carton(s)
Butter Beans
1 unit(s)
Ciabatta
(Contains Cereals containing gluten)
700 milliliter(s)
Boiled Water for the Soup
Preheat your oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas mark 7.
Heat a generous drizzle of oil in a large saucepan on medium-high heat.
Once hot, add the chorizo and cook until the chorizo starts to brown, 3-4 mins.
Meanwhile, halve, peel and thinly slice the onion. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press).
Once cooked, remove the chorizo with a slotted spoon, pop it into a small bowl (keep the chorizo oil in the pan, it all adds to the flavour).
Next, reduce the heat to medium, add the onion to the pan, season with salt and pepper and fry, stirring occasionally, until golden, 7-8 mins.
While the onion is cooking, chop the potato into 2cm chunks (peel first if you prefer). Boil a full kettle.
Once the onions have started to caramelise, stir in the smoked paprika and half the garlic. Fry until fragrant, 1 min more.
Add the chicken broth paste, chicken stock paste and boiled water (see pantry for amount) and bring back to the boil.
When boiling, add the potatoes and reduce to a simmer until you can easily slip a knife through, 15-18 mins.
Meanwhile, zest and halve the lemon. Roughly chop the kale. Drain and rinse the cannellini beans in a sieve.
Cut the ciabatta into 1cm slices.
Pop the ciabatta onto a medium baking tray in a single layer. Drizzle with oil, add the remaining garlic and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat well.
When the potatoes have 10 mins remaining, bake the toasts on the middle shelf until golden, 8-10 mins, then remove from the oven and set aside.
Once the potato is tender, using a hand blender, partially blend some of the potatoes until the broth is thickened slightly. TIP: If you don't have a hand blender, use a potato masher and mash some of the potatoes in the soup until thickened.
Once thickened, stir in the chopped kale, chorizo, cannellini beans and a pinch of sugar (if you have any). Simmer until wilted, 3-4 mins more. Remove from the heat.
Stir in a pinch of lemon zest and squeeze in some lemon juice. Taste and season with salt, pepper and more lemon juice if needed.
Once everything's ready, share the caldo verde inspired soup between bowls. Top each soup with a garlicky toast.
Serve the remaining toasts on the side for dipping and scooping to finish.
Enjoy!