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The Ultimate Gazpacho
Laura

The Ultimate Gazpacho

A refreshing chilled Spanish tomato soup packed with fresh garden vegetables, basil, and bright sherry vinegar. Perfect for hot summer days.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Chilling Time 2 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: Spanish
Calories: 185
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2½ pounds ripe red tomatoes cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 small Vidalia or sweet yellow onion peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 small cucumber peeled, seeded, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 medium red bell pepper cored, seeded, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • ¼ cup fresh basil leaves plus extra for garnish
  • 1 large garlic clove peeled
  • ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
  • ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste

Equipment

  • Blender
  • Cutting board
  • Chef's knife
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • serving bowls

Method
 

  1. Prepare vegetables: Core tomatoes and cut into 1-inch chunks. Reserve ¼ cup tomato seeds in small bowl for garnish. Add half tomato chunks to blender, half to serving bowl. Add all onion chunks to blender.
  2. Divide remaining vegetables: Cut off one-fourth of cucumber, finely chop and place in garnish bowl. Slice rest into 1-inch chunks, divide between blender and serving bowl. Repeat with bell pepper, reserving finely chopped portion for garnish.
  3. Blend base: Add basil, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and 10 twists black pepper to blender. Secure lid and blend on low, increasing to high, until completely smooth (about 2 minutes).
  4. Add texture: Pour reserved chunks from serving bowl into blender. Pulse 10-20 seconds until broken into small pieces. Stop here for texture, or blend longer for smaller pieces.
  5. Season and chill: Add pinch of salt to garnish bowl, stir, and refrigerate. Chill soup at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours for flavors to develop.
  6. Serve: Taste and adjust salt or pepper if needed. Divide into bowls, top with reserved garnishes, fresh basil, and black pepper. Serve cold.

Notes

  • For smooth gazpacho: blend all ingredients together at once until completely smooth
  • Use ripest tomatoes available for best flavor
  • Soup thickens as it chills, adjust consistency with cold water if needed
  • Keeps refrigerated 3-4 days in airtight container
  • Freezes reasonably well though texture may change slightly