Sopas de carne é pāo (Portuguese Meat Soup)

I ate this stew/soup at my good friend Richard Santos’ house in the East Bay this week and it knocked my socks off. It’s not super spicy, just warms your insides, and when you put the artisan bread pieces in the broth…man oh man, it’s fine. He said his high school history teacher gave him the recipe ages ago. The Portuguese often refer to this soup as Sopas do Divino Espirito Santo, or Pentecost soup. Serves four.

2 lbs. beef stewing meat or roast (steak cut 1-1/2” to 2” thick works well too)
2 Tablespoons olive/canola oil
1 onion sliced
3-4 cloves garlic
8-10 allspice
12 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons white vinegar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 can tomato sauce
1 cup white wine
1 cup beef broth
½ head cabbage
4 cups chopped kale
1 cup fresh mint

Brown the meat in hot oil. Sauté the onion until soft but not brown. Add garlic, allspice, peppercorns, bay leaves, vinegar and brown sugar. Cover with water and simmer slowly 2-3 hours or until meat is tender. Cool. If the broth and meat are chilled in the refrigerator, the fat can be easily skimmed off.

Heat the stock and meat. Add 1 can tomato sauce and 1 cup white wine. If liquid seems inadequate, add 3 cups beef stock. Add the chopped cabbage, kale and mint reserving about ¼ cup. Simmer gently until vegetables are cooked.

The traditional method of serving is to turn off the heat and add several large pieces of day old French bread. These are broken up and served to each person with the soup. You can also spoon soup over the bread at the bottom of each bowl or put the bread in the pot before coming to the table. Fresh bread is also served separately.