An easy and delicious Portuguese watercress soup (Caldo Verde), with carrots and spicy chorizo sausage.
Caldo Verde is a classic Portuguese soup, also known as Portuguese watercress soup. My version veers a little more toward a rustic version of the classic soup.
For my soup, I didn’t add a lot of stock, I didn’t puree it all the way and I stirred lots of chorizo chunks into the soup, instead of just using a bit for garnish. And I used a bit less of the greens and let them wilt in the soup. It ended up being the perfect soup for a cool and rainy day. The beauty of this soup though is that it’s delicious either way. I’ve included instructions in the recipe below for both versions.
Ingredients and substitutions
A few notes about the key ingredients …
Watercress – Watercress can sometimes be hard to find in my area. It’s always a bit hit or miss if it is on the shelf. In a pinch, baby arugula is a decent substitute. You could also use the more traditional collard greens or kale.
Dry-cured chorizo sausage – This sausage is usually found in or around the deli meat and is sold in chunks or wrapped in paper. If you can’t find Portuguese chorizo you can substitute Spanish chorizo. They are often available as mild or hot.You don’t want to use fresh chorizo sausage from the fresh meat section.
Recipe tips!
- I think the biggest contributor to the fabulous flavour of this soup is that the chorizo is boiled with the vegetables, so it imparts its flavour as the soup cooks. This is especially nice if you’re a spice lover and you start with a hot chorizo. You’ll end up with a soup that will warm you up on the coldest day!
- What makes this soup Caldo Verde “ISH”, is the use of watercress, instead of the more traditional collard greens or kale. The watercress is lovely in this soup – delicate in both flavour and texture and honestly, a nice change from the tougher greens.
- I wasn’t able to find the Portuguese chourico sausage, so I went with a hot, cured Spanish Chorizo. I loved the extra spiciness, but if you’re not a spice lover, look for regular chorizo. Just be sure to get the dry cured variety, which is usually found in the deli section.
Making ahead, storing and freezing
This soup can be made ahead and refrigerated as it holds well in the refrigerator.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
This soup will also freeze well for up to 3 months.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email and I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get great new recipes from me every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Seasons and Suppers.
You can unsubscribe at any time.
Get the Recipe: Portuguese Watercress Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, diced
- 6-8 oz Spanish dry cured Chorizo , or Portuguese Chourico sausage, cut in to 2 or 3 chunks
- 1 1/2 cups carrots, diced (about 2 carrots)
- 4 cups potatoes, diced (about 3 potatoes)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 bunch watercress, chopped
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until it starts to soften. Add garlic and sausage chunks and cook, stirring, until garlic is fragrant, but not browned. Add carrots and potatoes and cook, stirring for a few minutes. Add chicken stock. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer 20-30 minutes until carrots and potatoes are tender. Remove sausage chunks to a plate.
- With an immersion blender or in small batches in a blender, puree the soup slightly, leaving a few small chunks. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, dice the sausage (you can save a few rounds for garnish if you like). Add the diced sausage to the pot and stir to heat.
- Just before serving, stir in the watercress and allow to wilt slightly and then spoon out soup in to bowls. Garnish with chorizo rounds and a bit of watercress.
- Notes: To make a smoother, thinner and elegant soup (perfect for appetizer soup), add an extra 1 to 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth to thin. Puree the soup completely, so no chunks are left. Add the chopped watercress to hot soup just before serving. Serve with a spoonful of diced chorizo as garnish.
Notes
More soup recipes to love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Loving all that chorizo – I am craving a good soup and this looks perfect!
Thanks Jessica. I’m a bit chorizo fan, too :)
Hello Jennifer!
I’m Célio from Portugal, author of the Sweet Gula blog.
Im very happy to see a portuguese recipe on your blog. I follow you and I love your sharings and fills me with pride to see here a recipe from my country.
Just a note, the original recipe does not take carrots, only is made with potatoes and cabbage.
There is also a more “light” version, replacing the potatoes for zucchini.
But I enjoyed your version. ;)
Kiss.
Hello Celio and thanks so much. At the cooking demo I attended, she also cooked up sardines and we ate them on a lovely corn bread. Was delicious! Enjoyed my taste of Portugal :) Cheers from Canada!
Caldo verde is one of my favorite soups and it’s deadly easy to prepare. You almost managed to get it right, just skip the carrot. If you want the recipe I will gladly sent it by email :)
Hi Ondina, While I usually aim for right, in this case, I was really just recreating a soup I saw made (and she used carrots :). That said, I would absolutely love your recipe for authentic Caldo Verde, if you’d like to send it along to me at jennifer AT seasonsandsuppers DOT ca Can’t wait to try it and thanks so much!