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Santa Maria Turnip Broth
Santa Maria turnip broth from the Azores: local turnips simmered with pork, chouriço, bacon and sweet potato, served over slices of homemade bread.
- 6 servings
- 30 min
- 1h30
- Easy
Turnip broth is one of Santa Maria's most emblematic dishes. It is made with “nabos da terra”, the island's own turnips, cooked with pork, chouriço, bacon and sweet potato, ideally in an iron pot.
Before they go into the pot with the meat, the turnips are blanched and then cooked in fresh water. At the table the broth is ladled over slices of homemade bread in a tureen, and the meat, turnips and sweet potato are served alongside.
Method
Scrape the skin off the turnips and cut them into thick pieces.
Blanch the turnips in boiling water for a few minutes and throw that water away.
Cook them again in fresh unsalted water, ideally in an iron pot, until almost tender.
Drain the turnips, rinse them in clean water and set aside.
In a large pot, simmer the pork and bacon in the water for about 40 minutes, skimming off any foam.
Add the turnips, chouriço and sweet potato, season with salt and simmer gently for about 30 minutes, until everything is tender.
Arrange the bread slices in a tureen and pour the hot broth over them.
Slice the meat and chouriço and serve them on a platter with the turnips and sweet potato, alongside the soaked bread.
Tips
- Outside Santa Maria, use small, firm turnips. Do not skip the blanching or the second cooking in fresh water, both part of the Santa Maria method.
- An iron pot holds the heat evenly, but any wide, heavy-based pan will do.
- Use day-old homemade bread, which soaks up the broth without falling apart.
- Taste before salting, as the chouriço and bacon are already salty.
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