Gazpacho is a soup to be consumed cold, especially in summer. It is native to Spain (Andalusia) but is also consumed in Portugal and some parts of Latin America.
The name derives from an ancient form of Spanish to signify the "remnants" of a meal, as if to say that the gazpacho was prepared with leftovers, which is common in the Spanish rural culture, just think of the Spanish omelette, which basically is nothing more than the ennoblement of the omelette with the leftovers of the previous days
Its origins are lost in ancient history, or in the Roman habits of eating a soup made of bread, oil, garlic and onion, a habit exported to the Iberian area, which has also survived the rise of the Moors and the return of the conquistadors, they brought the tomatoes with them, an essential element for the modern gazpacho.
The ingredients of the gazpacho
The ingredients for a classic gazpacho are mainly tomato, onion, garlic, vinegar, olive oil, spices, other variable fresh vegetables, such as cucumber, courgettes, peppers, chilli, roots, celery .
The main ingredient is the tomato, to be reduced into cubes and then placed in a large container. Tomato is an excellent source not only of lycopene (very important for eyesight) but also of taste and precious organic water rich in vitamins and minerals.
Garlic and onion follow , bulbs worshiped in ancient Egypt like gods, so well known are their medicinal properties, especially raw.
Cucumber, one of the most common ingredients in gazpacho, is very important in summer as it releases organic water slowly and keeps it hydrated .
Courgettes have more or less the same function as cucumbers; peppers are rich in vitamins, especially ascorbic acid, and give a lot of flavor;
the chili pepper, in addition to providing a pleasant spicy sensation, is used to reduce sweating during the scorching summer; celery is rich in antioxidants, water and helps reduce blood pressure.
To these classic ingredients obviously others can be added to taste, often in the most modern versions we find the tasty avocado, rich in vegetable fats and chlorophyll.
We come to the proportions for a balanced recipe : every kilo of tomatoes we will put a cucumber, a pepper, half an onion, a clove of garlic, and the rest to taste.
The preparation of the gazpacho
There are several methods for making a good gazpacho . We suggest this. We have already cut our tomatoes into cubes, and placed in a large container. We will do the same with the rest of the vegetables and go and get our extractor.
Don't we have an extractor? Even a blender will do just fine, but in this case we will blend our vegetables calmly and in several passes so as to be sure that all the diced vegetables are well blended.
Now we have to pass our homogeneous mixture through a sieve, a filter, or a cloth, in order to separate the juice from the raw pulp and from the fiber.
The result is an opaque reddish juice, to which we will add vinegar, oil, spices and salt to taste . Finally the last step, add water and put it in the fridge so that it reaches the most pleasant temperature to counter the summer heat.
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What to watch out for?
A few notes: eye to allergies and intolerances . Raw solanaceae contain a lot of solanine, a toxin that can be very annoying to people who are particularly sensitive to it.
The fresh homemade gazpacho is excellent but does not contain preservatives, it is worth remembering that all these finely chopped vegetables will oxidize within a few hours, so it is right to do it and consume it, perhaps offering it to guests, rather than making it a big one production to be stored in the refrigerator.
The more time passes, the lower the nutritional values .