We grow and eat a lot of kale. Most people I tell about this have not heard of kale though and have no idea what to do with it. I mostly tell people it is from the same family as cabbage, only tastier, use it any way you would cabbage. This usually puts them off totally, most likely due to traumatic childhood cabbage memories. We are very lucky here as the local Bungendore butcher is an old school butchers shop that still breaks down whole animals and smokes their own small goods onsite. It is a good day in town when you can smell the smoker and see the smoke choofing out the side of the butchers shop. Why is this important? Because as well as fabulous bacon for Sunday breakfast they make a very good chorizo. So if you are prepared to move on from dark memories of your childhood have a go at this. It is very easy, quick and tasty. I have not specified quantities as it is just a basic soup and the start is the base of most any soup thickened with potato so just make as much as you need.

Picture from SBS TV

Ingredients

• good oil or butter
• Chorizo (twice as much as you would think) sliced
• Garlic
• onions, shallots or leeks
• Potatoes 1kg or so
• Stock 
• Kale – finely shredded
• Salt and Pepper to season
• Good bread – one can’t have soup without ‘dodger’.

Method

Heat oil/butter in a heavy pot and fry off the chorizo. Remove from pot. Add onion/leeks and garlic to the oil and cook until soft but not coloured. Add stock and potato and simmer until potato starts to fall apart. Mash or blitz, mashing gives a better texture I think. Add half the chorizo and the kale. Cook gently until kale wilts. Check seasoning then serve with the bread and remaining chorizo on the side. 

Addit: Up to the part where you mash or blitz the soup this is a basic soup base where the purpose of the potato is to thicken the soup and to bulk it up cheaply. From there on it is really just up to your imagination. For example try.

• Corn and shredded chicken
• Daikon radish and Beetroot
• Silverbeet instead of kale
• Make it very thick and add Lamb chops (the type with the round bone with marrow) or left over roast.

Go wild.

Cheers

Franky