The recipes

Caldo Verde


2 lbs potatoes
1 package Chouriço de carne (Portuguese Chouriço)
2 Onions
3 Cloves of garlic
2 Bay leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp. Salt
250 g kale


Peel and chop potatoes and onions, place in a large pot of water with about 2 knuckles above the potatoes. Also place in the pot the garlic, the bay leaves, the Chouriço with the casing removed, the olive oil, and salt. Bring to a boil and let boil for 15 minutes. While the pot is boiling take your kale and slice it into thin strips (in Portugal you can buy this already done but I doubt you can buy it like that in the states). When the pot has boiled for 15 minutes and the potatoes are soft remove the bay leaves and the Chouriço. Puree the potatoes and the onions in the water making sure that there are no chunks left. slice the Chouriço in about 1/4-1/2 in. rounds. Add the Chouriço and the bay leaves back to the potatoes. Also add your sliced kale at this time. Simmer for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.


This is a really simple soup and it is the kind of soup that is better the next day because the flavors of the Chouriço are able to mix more into the soup.


Bacalhau com Natas
Salt Cod in cream sauce


2 lbs Potatoes
500 g. Bacalhau*
1 large onion
Olive oil
grated Mozzarella


White sauce:
2 wooden spoons of butter (about 1/2-1 cup)
2 wooden spoons of flour (about 1/2-1 cup)
2 cups milk
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup cream




*The Bacalhau will need to be soaked over night with the water changed a couple times to remove all of the salt from the cod. In Portugal you can buy the fish frozen with the salt already removed and I am not sure if it is available in the same way in the States. You might also need to remove skin and bones from the fish depending on the bacalhau.


Peel and chop the potatoes into about 1/2 in. cubes. Place in water and boil for 5-10 min. You are not needing to cook the potatoes all the way but you do want them on the softer side. In a seperate pot boil the bacalhau in water for 5-10 minutes. Drain the bacalhau and the potatoes and set aside but do not mix the two ingredients. 


Slice the onions into small pieces. In a saute pan add the olive oil and the onions and cook until the onions are translucent. Add the Bacalhau and incorporate the onions with the Bacalhau. Set aside.


Making the sauce:


In a sauce pan melt the butter and mix with the flour, allow it to cook a little bit. Add the milk to the butter and flour and continuously whisk to get rid of any lumps. Add the cream and whisk again. Put the garlic through a garlic press and add to the sauce. Let the sauce simmer and thicken about 5 minutes. You may need to add more milk to the sauce to thin it out a little bit, you want the sauce to be thin like the thickness of cream. 


Assembling the dish:
In a 13x9 pan put all of the potatoes on the bottom. Then spread the bacalhau and onion mixture on top of the potatoes. Pour the cream sauce evenly over the bacalhau and potatoes. Take the grated mozzarella and sprinkle it over the dish. Bake the dish for 20 minutes at about 375, the cheese should be browned.