Potato, Leek and Chouriço Soup

Hi again friends. It’s Nelson. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed a trend here – I kinda’ love soup! Almost any kind of soup usually makes me happy. It’s a comfort food that I never tire of. I find that soups taste even better during the fall.

The leaves have just about all fallen off the trees and we’re well into fall now. The sad part about that is that farmers’ markets have closed or are getting ready to close up for the year. Fortunately for me, our new fav local “19th Ave. Farmers’ Market” was open last weekend, and may even be open until the end of this week. I stopped by on the weekend, not even sure what I was looking for… I just needed to go to the market. Even though it’s end of season for them, they still had a good selection of farm goodies. I picked up some Honeycrisp apples for a new jam recipe (…yup, I said jam! Stay tuned!), a jar of honey, lettuce, tomatoes, pears and then I saw leeks! The lightbulb went off and I knew what I had to make. I also picked up potatoes and headed home.

When I got home, I realized my leftover bacon had been sitting in the fridge a little too long and wasn’t usable. “… what to do???… oh, is that a package of Portuguese chouriço in the corner of the fridge drawer?… done!”. I made a potato, leek and chouriço soup. I was pleasantly surprised to get a text message the next day after lunch from Liz that read “This is great!”. There are few things more satisfying to me than seeing a smile on my wife’s and kids’  faces when I hit that culinary home run! Typically, potato and leek soups are made with bacon to get that smokey flavour. Mine is a subtle twist on the popular soup. The chouriço pieces add a nice little element of surprise to the soup.

This soup’s foundation is actually quite similar to Caldo Verde, a very popular traditional Portuguese soup we’ve posted in the past. There’s a good chance if you love one, you’ll love the other. This soup is quick and easy to make, so it’s a perfect addition to a weeknight dinner. Soup’s on… eat well, friends!

Potato, Leek and Chouriço Soup

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

50 mins

 

This Potato, Leek and Chouriço Soup recipe is to die for. Hearty and delicious on a cold day. A traditional soup with a twist... chouriço instead of bacon.

Author: Nelson Cardoso

Recipe type: Appetizer

Cuisine: Portuguese

Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tbs olive oil for sautéing the chouriço
• 1 lbs of Portuguese chouriço cut in ½ inch wheels and then halved (I used sweet, but hot is also fine if you like a little kick)
• 2½ lbs white potatoes chopped into equal size pieces
• 2 large leaks washed and diced (green and white included)
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 2 tbs unsalted butter
• 3 tbs all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp salt
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. In a large pot, heat up the olive oil on high.
2. Sauté the chouriço until the edges start getting brown.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and remove the chouriço with a slotted spoon, but leave the oil.
4. Raise the temperature to medium high and sauté the leeks until they're soft (about 5 minutes).
5. Sprinkle the flour over the leeks and add the potatoes.
6. Mix well and add the chicken stock.
7. Add salt and pepper.
8. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to medium.
9. Simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft enough to easily be poked through with a fork.
10. Blend the soup with a hand blender (what I used), a stand blender or a food processor until smooth.
11. Add the sautéd chouriço back into the pot and stir.
12. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes

Some people add cream into the soup at the end for an extra creamy texture, but I find that if you blend the soup well, it's already quite smooth without the additional calories.

3.5.3208

Nelson Cardoso