The slow-simmered national stew of hominy corn, beans, and meats — endlessly reboiled and always improving.

Where does Cachupa come from?

Cachupa is a Cape Verdean dish from Santiago (Praia), Cape Verde.

Can Cachupa be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Cachupa recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Cachupa take to make?

About 180 minutes total (30 minutes prep, 150 minutes cooking), serving 8.

Cachupa — a Santiago (Praia), Cape Verde recipe

Name: Cachupa
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 150 min
Total time: 180 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Cape Verdean
Ingredients: 2 cups dried hominy corn (or samp), soaked overnight; 1.5 cups dried beans (pinto + lima), soaked overnight; 1 lb + 2 links pork and chorizo or linguiça; 1/4 head cabbage; 1 sweet potato; 1 cassava; 2 onion; 4 cloves garlic; 2 leaves bay; 1 tbsp paprika

Africa → 🇨🇻 Cape Verde → Santiago (Praia)

Cachupa

Cape Verdean · medium · serves 8

prep 30 min · cook 150 min

~476 cal · 23g protein · 45g carbs · 22g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Hearty corn-and-bean stew with sausage and greens

🇨🇻 Santiago (Praia)

Cachupa is Cape Verde in a pot: a slow stew of hominy corn and beans that families cook in vast batches and reheat for days, the leftovers frying up crisp for breakfast as cachupa refogada. Born of island thrift, it carries Portuguese, African, and Atlantic threads in every spoonful.

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Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 8 —

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2 cups dried hominy corn (or samp), soaked overnight

•

1.5 cups dried beans (pinto + lima), soaked overnight

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1 lb + 2 links pork and chorizo or linguiça

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1/4 head cabbage

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1 sweet potato

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1 cassava

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2 onion

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4 cloves garlic

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2 leaves bay

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1 tbsp paprika

Instructions

1

Simmer the drained corn and beans in fresh water with the bay leaves for about 90 minutes until nearly tender.

2

Add the pork (or smoked tofu) and sausage, onion, garlic, and paprika and cook 30 minutes.

3

Add the cabbage, sweet potato, and cassava and simmer 30 more minutes until everything is soft and the broth thickens.

4

Season well and let it rest — cachupa is always better after sitting.

5

Serve in deep bowls; fry the leftovers with an egg (or without) the next morning.

Santiago island tradition.

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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Santiago (Praia). The largest island, home of the slow-simmered cachupa.

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Cape Verde. Atlantic islands whose slow-cooked cachupa never ends.

🌍

Africa. Fifty-four countries of tagines, stews, and fire-kissed grills.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →