Recipe Portuguese bean and cabbage soup

Herbie

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This is husband’s Grandmother’s recipe for Portuguese Bean and Cabbage Soup. We call it Avó Soup (Avó is the Portuguese word for Grandmother).

I’ve edited for English so apologies if I left any errors in. I've also added my changes I do to make the soup vegan.

For boiled potatoes, cabbage etc. this is surprisingly very tasty.

2 - Tins of beans - Red Kidney beans or white kidney beans or butter beans (I usually use one tin of each red and white kidney beans to make it more colourful)
1 - Onion (Medium size)
3 - Carrots
1 – White Turnip/Swede (half a large one)
1 - Large Potato
½ - Savoy Cabbage
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Tomato puree
½ - Churizo. Or to make the soup vegan: garlic & smoked paprika to taste (this gives you the garlicy and smoky taste you would get from the chorizo)
Pasta – the small kind for soup (I don’t add pasta as the gluten free pasta goes mushy in soups!)


I sometimes add a bay leaf or two which was not on the recipe from husband's Grandma but is typical in Portuguese cooking and is used in other people’s versions of this soup.



Method:

  • Chop all vegetables and churizo into small-ish cubes.
  • In a saucepan sauté the onion and chorizo (if using) in olive oil until the onion softens but does not colour.
  • Add to the pan all the rest of the vegetables (apart from the cabbage), a squeeze of tomato puree, beans, and if you have not added churizo then add the vegan alternative ingredients – garlic & smoked paprika to taste.
  • Cover with just enough boiling water to cover the ingredients but not so they float.
  • Simmer and add a little water if needed. This is a thick soup.
  • When vegetables are cooked, add the chopped cabbage and small sized pasta (handful but is optional) and cook 'til cabbage tender.
  • Add salt/pepper.
I'll take a photo when I make another batch tomorrow.
 
Last edited:
This is husband’s Grandmother’s recipe for Portuguese Bean and Cabbage Soup. We call it Avó Soup (Avó is the Portuguese word for Grandmother).

I’ve edited for English so apologies if I left any errors in. I've also added my changes I do to make the soup vegan.

For boiled potatoes, cabbage etc. this is surprisingly very tasty.

2 - Tins of beans - Red Kidney beans or white kidney beans or butter beans (I usually use one tin of each red and white kidney beans to make it more colourful)
1 - Onion (Medium size)
3 - Carrots
1 – White Turnip/Swede
1 - Large Potato
½ - Savoy Cabbage
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Tomato puree
½ - Churizo. Or to make the soup vegan: garlic & smoked paprika to taste (this gives you the garlicy and smoky taste you would get from the chorizo)
Pasta – the small kind for soup (I don’t add pasta as the gluten free pasta goes mushy in soups!)


I sometimes add a bay leaf or two which was not on the recipe from Joel’s Grandma but is typical in Portuguese cooking and is used in other people’s versions of this soup.



Method:

  • Chop all vegetables and churizo into small-ish cubes.
  • In a saucepan sauté the onion and chorizo (if using) in olive oil until the onion softens but does not colour.
  • Add to the pan all the rest of the vegetables (apart from the cabbage), a squeeze of tomato puree, beans, and if you have not added churizo then add the vegan alternative ingredients – garlic & smoked paprika to taste.
  • Cover with just enough boiling water to cover the ingredients but not so they float.
  • Simmer and add a little water if needed. This is a thick soup.
  • When vegetables are cooked, add the chopped cabbage and small sized pasta (handful but is optional) and cook till cabbage tender.
  • Add salt/pepper.
I'll take a photo when I make another batch tomorrow.

Portuguese sopa 👍
 
This sounds really good. I love nearly any kind of bean soup.

As far as the pasta going mushy, whenever I make a soup with pasta, I just make the pasta separately for that meal and add it to my bowl. Then, for leftovers the next night, I make a fresh batch of pasta.
 
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