Laden with the sweet, fresh vegetables of the Mediterranean, gazpacho is a super tasty, incredibly healthy soup or drink, with a slight spicy kick. It is served very cold and is perfect on hot summer days.
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
First make the gazpacho:
Prepare the vegetables:
- tomatoes: roughly chopped
- pepper/capsicum – stem and seeds removed, roughly chopped
- chilli – stem and seeds removed, roughly chopped
- cucumber – end trimmed, roughly chopped
- red onion – peeled and roughly chopped
- garlic – peeled, halved and core removed
Tip the vegetables and salt into a food processor and blitz, on top speed, until smooth.
Add the vinegar and 1 tablespoon of oil and blend again. Drizzle the remaining oil through the spout as you continue to process.
Place a sieve over a bowl or jug and pour in the gazpacho. Strain.
Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.
Place it in the fridge for a few hours, before you serve it.
Now make the Parsley Oil: roughly chop the parsley and stems and blitz in a food processor until chopped.
With the motor running, slowly pour in the olive oil.
Strain the parsley and oil through a sieve to get a clear oil. I double strain; the second sieve I use has a much finer mesh, but this is not strictly necessary.
Gazpacho can be served as a drink or as a soup.
As a drink - I like to thin the gazpacho slightly and serve it in shot glasses or, if serving in larger glasses, I don’t thin it, but then I serve it over ice. If the weather is particularly hot, chill the glasses first.
As a soup - serve very chilled in bowls with a drizzle of parsley oil and your choice of toppings. If the weather is very hot, I may add a couple of cubes of ice to the soup, plus, I will chill the bowls first.
Equipment:
Fresh Parsley Oil:
The fresh parsley oil is an optional extra. You could replace the parsley with basil or coriander, if you prefer. You simply need to drizzle a small amount over the gazpacho.
Use the best, freshest vegetables you can buy:
The key to a great gazpacho is the freshness and sweetness of the vegetables you use – use the best, freshest vegetables you can buy and make sure they are ripe. I use:
Smooth or Chunky?
I tend to make my gazpacho smooth – I purée and then sieve it. However, it is also delicious served chunky. If you prefer it chunky, pulse (rather than purée) half to three quarters of the vegetables in a food processor, add the olive oil and vinegar, chop the remaining vegetables, and then stir these through.
How do you serve Gazpacho?
Gazpacho can be served as a soup or a drink. This recipe is quite thick which is the perfect consistency to eat from a bowl with a spoon. If you prefer to serve it as a drink, simply thin with some fridge cold water until you reach the consistency you are looking for.