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Wednesday 18 January 2017

Potaje de Berros ~Watercress Soup


We love the Canary Islands and have visited all of them on many occasions. The climate, terrain and the food is something we really enjoy and this is the reason we return year after year. Last year we booked through Monarch for our holiday to Tenerife. We stayed in self catering apartments as this gives us lots of flexibility and we can hire a car and drive around the island with its lovely coastline and mountain range. We enjoy stopping by at the local villages and farmers markets to buy fresh fruit, vegetables and also home made bread. The fruit and vegetables are always available in abundance and they look so natural and taste delicious.




Eating out and discovering local cuisine is also fun to do on holidays and our mission has been to find as many Canarian dishes  that we can that are suitable for vegetarians. Over the years we have discovered many dishes that we enjoy such as  Patatas Bravas ,Caldo de Papas y Cilantro (Potato and coriander soup), Mojo Verde (Green Mojo), Mojo Picon (spicy sauce),  Papas Arrugadas (wrinkled potatoe)s and Platanos Fritas (fried bananas).

On our recent visit, one of the restaurants we regularly visited was well known for their most amazing watercress soup known as Potaje be Berros. Unfortunately the soup on the menu was actually made with pig ribs which was not suitable for vegetarians, however after chatting to the owner he created a vegetarian version for us and it tasted amazing.

Its admirable that restaurant owners are very accommodating and more than willing to rustle up vegetarian dishes even if they are not on the menu. We enjoy chatting to the chefs and I have come away with some great recipes from my visits, especially an authentic Canarian family recipe for the Mojo Pican.


I was so impressed with the soup that I have recreated my own vegetarian version of Potaje de Berros- Water cress soup. The soup is very chunky more like a stew than soup and it tastes absolutely delicious.


print recipe

Potaje de Berros ~Watercress Soup
Hearty  and rustic soup with beans and vegetables nad peppery watercress.





Ingredients:
  • 1 Medium sweet potato diced
  • 1 Corn on the cob cut into 1 inch rounds
  • 4 Medium tomatoes finely chopped.
  • 1 Green pepper finely chopped
  • 300 g fresh watercress stalks removed and roughly torn
  • 1 Red onion finely chopped
  • 2 Cloves garlic finely chopped
  • 250 g precooked flageolet beans (white beans)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
  • Few strands of saffron
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1000 ml water 

Method:
1. In a large saucepan add the olive oil and wait for it to heat up, then add the garlic and onions and saute until translucent. 2. Add the chopped tomatoes and the diced potatoes and sweet corn and add the water. Cook the corn and sweet potatoes until almost 75 percent cooked (approx 10 mins) 3. Add to the pan, the green pepper, precooked flageolet beans, salt, pepper, chilli flakes and simmer the soup for 5 more minutes until the potatoes and corn are fully cooked. 4. At the last minute stir in the water cress and just cook for 1 more minute until the leaves wilt. 5. Stir in the saffron and spoon the soup into serving bowls and serve with hot seeded bread. 
Details
Prep time: Cooking time: Total time: Yield: 4 servings




This post is a contribution to the Monarch Island Cookbook in collaboration with Monarch 

60 comments:

  1. This sounds like a really interesting recipe, and not too hard to make either x

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    1. We love it and its so quick to make only about 25 mins to make .

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  2. Honestly, this looks AMAZING! I will have to try this!

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    1. Sarah I promise you you won't be dissapointed,

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  3. Ohh nice and I love the idea of some corn on the cob in it, really hearty. Mich x

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    1. Definitely hearty and very filling, a meal in its self when served with crusty bread.

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  4. I've never tried a soup like this but it sounds really yummy! Perfect for a chilly day!

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    1. We also tried it first time in Tenefife and now adore it.

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  5. And watercress is one of the most nutritious greens, too!

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    1. Watercress gives it a lovely peppery flavour.

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  6. This hearty soup looks perfect for my cold, busy weeknights. I can't wait to make this for my family.

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  7. I have seen watercress in grocery stores but never bought them. I guess i didnt have a good recipe for what to make with them. This looks delicious!

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    1. I love the adfition of watercress , it adds a nice flavour, but trick is not to overcook it.Just add at the last minute.

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  8. So nice that the chef would accommodate you and make a vegetarian version of the soup for you! This soup looks so delicious and very filling with good for you ingredients!

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    1. I always find that explaining that I a food blogger interests chefs and they are always happy to share their recipes.

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  9. What an interesting recipe - I'd love to try it as it seems so easy to make x

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  10. I love this recipe with so many healthy ingredients. You were so lucky to have gone to a restaurant where the chef is willing to listen to his clients and create a vegetarian dish. Some restaurants tend to use ready sauces and are not so flexible.

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  11. my mum would enjoy this I might try and make her some x

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  12. It's been a while since I have had watercress, but I have always liked it. This sounds like a wonderful recipe and it was so nice of the chef to create the vegetarian version for you.

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  13. I like hearty soup and I like the look of this recipe as it looks very filling x

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  14. ooohhh this look really good. would make a brilliant, healthy filling lunch

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  15. What a wonderful warming meal for this time of year!

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  16. I love a soup with beans in as it really makes it into meal.

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  17. Wow I can't believe it is so quick to make and I do love watercress! This looks incredible x

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  18. This looks delish, such a tasty and healthy meal!

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  19. The soup looks so hearty and filling! I'm always on the look out for different soup recipes, so will have to give this a try.

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  20. That's so good that the restaurant created a veggie version for you, sounds yummy x

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  21. We love the Canary islands too, and the local food. This soup sounds particularly delicious - I think I'll try it out this weekend.

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  22. That looks so tasty and healthy too. I have a new soup maker so will have to try it

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  23. I like trying new soups so will have to try this one! x

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  24. A chunky soup like this must be very filling - thanks for the recipe.

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  25. This soup looks amazing, I also love how the chef at the restaurant was able to accommodate you...

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  26. This looks tasty! I love a warm, comforting soup! Thanks for the recipe :)

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  27. I love a warm, comforting soup any day :) Thanks for the recipe!

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  28. omg this looks amazing, would love to try it xx

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  29. Love the hearty and filling soup. I like the idea of adding corn on the cob. Wish I could get some watercress here. Its really sweet of the chef to be so accommodative.

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  30. We live just around the corner from Alresford in Hampshire which has a watercress festival each year. This sounds like a lovely soup and we love the taste of Watercress.

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  31. Mmmm this soup sounds and looks amazing and delicious!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe with us :-)

    Leslie xoxo

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  32. vegetables soup is the most useful soap then all. Nice recipe.

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  33. Sounds nice.. such a healthy soup option. I like your crockery too.

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  34. That looks so wonderful and hearty, I really have to make this.

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  35. Ooh that looks so good Nayna. Definitely more of a stew I'd say, but who cares about the name. I've always wanted to go to the Canary Islands. One day I'll manage it!

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  36. Wow, that is a stew soup and a half. Fabulous!

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  37. This does look really interesting! We eat a lot of watercress in our house!

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  38. Ooh that looks delicious! I wanna go to the Canaries too - it looks beautiful.

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  39. Fabulous warming soup, I love the large bits of corn cob in it. GG

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  40. I've never tried a watercress soup before but this looks lovely!

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  41. Perfect nutritious warming soup one to try out soon

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  42. ooh that sounds delicious - I'm loving soup at the moment x

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  43. So many chunky ingredients in this soup - more like a stew.

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  44. The pictures look very tempting! I love soup now its so cold outside x

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  45. Love watercress especially in soups! Your vegan version looks healthy and delicious and so full of colors as well. Yum! :)

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  46. Oh my gosh, that looks wonderful. I could eat it now!

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  47. My mum is a huge fan of watercress soup. I love this chunky veggie-packed version!

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  48. I'm a big fan of watercress soup and I love this chunky version, so vibrant and healthy!

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  49. Mmmm sounds and looks delicious x

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  50. This looks sooo nice. I've made plain watercress soup but never with all these added ingredients!

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  51. I almost didn't read this post because the only Watercress Soup I've tasted was an English version and it didn't rock my world at all, but WOW lady, this one looks hearty and delish, in fact there are so many posts on your blog site, I'm off to trawl through some more posts. Great to connect with you.

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