Gazpacho

Name: Gazpacho
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Total time: 2 h 50 min
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: 1 kg (2¼ lb) very ripe tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped; 1 small cucumber, about 200 g, peeled and chopped; 1 green bell pepper, or Italian frying pepper, seeded and chopped; ¼ small red onion, about 30 g, chopped; 1 clove garlic; 50 g (1¾ oz) day-old white bread, crusts removed, about 1 thick slice; 8 g (1⅓ tsp) fine sea salt; 2 tbsp sherry vinegar, plus more to taste; 100 ml (scant ½ cup) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to serve; finely diced cucumber, green pepper and red onion, a few spoonfuls of each, set aside from the vegetables above; 1 hard-boiled egg, optional, chopped; see Boiled Eggs

Andalusia's chilled tomato soup, emulsified with olive oil and bread

Serves: 4
Hands-on: 20 min
Total: 2 h 50 min
Level: Easy

Gazpacho is a summer salad turned into something you drink. Salting the chopped vegetables for half an hour draws out their juices before blending, and plenty of olive oil blended in at the end turns it from thin juice into a smooth, pale-coral emulsion.

Ingredients

Soup

1 kgvery ripe tomatoes (2¼ lb)cored and roughly chopped
1small cucumberabout 200 g, peeled and chopped
1green bell pepperor Italian frying pepper, seeded and chopped
¼small red onionabout 30 g, chopped
1 clovegarlic
50 gday-old white bread, crusts removed (1¾ oz)about 1 thick slice
8 gfine sea salt (1⅓ tsp)
2 tbspsherry vinegarplus more to taste
100 mlextra-virgin olive oil (scant ½ cup)plus more to serve

To serve

finely diced cucumber, green pepper and red oniona few spoonfuls of each, set aside from the vegetables above
1hard-boiled eggoptional, chopped; see Boiled Eggs

Diet: Vegetarian, Dairy-free
Allergens: gluten, sulphites, egg
Origin: Spain (Andalusia)
Season: Summer

Method

Set aside about 2 tbsp each of the cucumber, pepper and onion, finely diced, for garnish, and refrigerate.
In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, remaining cucumber, pepper, onion and garlic. Tear in the bread and toss with the salt and vinegar. Leave 30 minutes at room temperature; the vegetables will release plenty of juice and the bread will soak it up. 30 min
Tip everything into a blender and blend on high until completely smooth, about 1 minute. 1 min
With the motor running, pour in the olive oil in a thin stream. The soup will turn paler and creamier.
For the silkiest texture, push it through a fine sieve with the back of a ladle. Taste and adjust with salt and vinegar.
Chill until very cold, at least 2 hours. Taste again before serving — cold dulls salt and acid, so it will likely need a touch more of each. 2 h
Serve in chilled bowls or glasses, topped with the diced vegetables, chopped egg if using and a thread of olive oil.

Why it works

Salt draws water out of the vegetable cells by osmosis, and that juice, carried by the bread, blends into a smoother, more flavorful soup. The bread's starch and the blender's force let olive oil form a stable emulsion, which is why gazpacho turns creamy without any dairy. Chilling mutes flavors, so final seasoning happens cold.

Common mistakes

Using pale, out-of-season tomatoes: gazpacho is only as good as the tomatoes. If they're poor, use the ripest you can find plus 1 tbsp tomato paste.
Serving it lukewarm: it needs to be properly cold.
Seasoning only once: re-season after chilling.

Variations

Salmorejo: Use 1 kg tomatoes, 150 g bread, 1 garlic clove and 150 ml olive oil only, blended very thick; top with chopped egg and diced serrano ham.
Watermelon: Replace 300 g of the tomatoes with seedless watermelon.

Make ahead and storage

Best made the day before; keeps 3 days in the fridge. Stir before serving. Doesn't freeze.

Notes

Gluten-free: leave out the bread and add 2 tbsp extra oil; the soup will be a little thinner. Egg only if you add the egg garnish.