Cool, refreshing, with a pleasant sourness of gazpacho - tomato soup from Andalusia will appeal to residents of any latitude!
Residents of the southernmost provincial province know a lot about cooking and fighting the summer heat: gazpacho is easy to cook and enjoyable to eat; it does not require boiling, contains few calories, and at the same time satisfies hunger and thirst. The consistency of gazpacho is a puree soup, unlike holodnik and okroshka, where ingredients are cut into slices, as well as tarator and beetroot soup, for which tinder products are on the grater. Gazpacho is very similar to tomato juice - but more interesting and richer in taste.
Not always tomatoes were the main ingredient of the famous Spanish recipe. Even before the Columbus journeys, the Andalusians were preparing their own branded soup of ... ground almonds. And until now white gazpacho with nuts, grapes and cucumber remains one of the most exquisite dishes.
And then the Spaniards and the Portuguese first mastered the cultivation of overseas fruits - tomatoes, imported to Europe from South America - and immediately adapted the novelty to their favorite summer soup. It turned out very well!
Tomato gazpacho is a classic, and it happens that, interestingly, not only red - there is both yellow and green gazpacho. For the preparation of such unusual varieties take, respectively, yellow varieties of tomatoes or green tomatoes.
But even this is not all variations: as each hostess has different tastes for borsch, so every Spanish cook has his own gazpacho! Depending on the season and the imagination of the cook, fruit is added to the soup - grapes, melon cubes; There are even exotic recipes with pineapples, mangoes and nectarines. And in the seaside restaurants, gazpacho is cooked with seafood - mussels and shrimps. But, before experimenting, I recommend trying classic Andalusian gazpacho.
Basic set of ingredients for 4 servings of gazpacho:
- 7 large, ripe tomatoes;
- 1 large cucumber;
- Half a small onion;
- 1/2 pcs. Bulgarian pepper;
- Juice of 1 lemon;
- 0, 5 tsp cumin;
- Salt, freshly ground black pepper - to your taste;
- Sugar - also to taste, 0, 5-1 t. L .;
- 1-1, 5 tbsp. l olive oil;
- 1 teaspoon of white wine vinegar;
- Greens.
Tomatoes for gazpacho choose the ripest, softest ones - they are easier to process into mashed potatoes, chopped in a blender and rubbed through a sieve. And the soup of juicy, tender flesh will turn out more than from strong tomatoes of medium ripeness.
Pepper for a classic recipe needs a fleshy, juicy, better green. Half a little pepper will be enough; if large - 1/4 is enough.
Olive oil we take the most delicious, fragrant and healthy - the first cold-pressed, labeled “Extra Virgin”. Vinegar is suitable and ordinary table 9%, but tastier and “more correctly” will work with the wine.
For beauty and aroma, you can add parsley, basil to the soup, garnish with mint leaves. According to the original recipe, you can do without greenery - but how elegantly the emerald leaves on red velvet gazpacho look! Spanish cold soup and to taste - velvety, like thick tomato juice. But, you see, it is better to try than read a hundred times!
Cooking Gazpacho
Wash the tomatoes, make a cross-cut on the bottom and fill with boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Then gently salt the hot water and fill the tomatoes with cold. Now the peel is easy to peel.
Wash pepper, clean the tail and the core, cut lengthwise and blanch for 5 minutes in boiling salted water until soft. If you skip this procedure or it is not enough to keep the pepper in boiling water, it will be difficult to rub hard pieces through a sieve.
Washing my cucumber and peeling it. Onion also cleaned and finely cut.
When all the ingredients are prepared, put tomatoes, cucumber, onion, pepper and cumin in a blender, and lightly press a button to cook the soup in 1 minute! Not so much more attractive than standing at the stove for half an hour. It remains to wipe the chopped vegetables in a puree through a sieve or a colander and season with spices.
In the mashed puree, squeeze lemon juice, salt, sugar and pepper, pour in vinegar, mix and add vegetable oil. Mix it again, taste it. What would you like to add: salt or sweets, or maybe hot pepper? Having adjusted the taste according to your preferences, we put gazpacho for an hour and a half in the fridge: the soup should be served without fail, chilled.
We decorate gazpacho with greens, you can put ice cubes - and taste it!
Serve gazpacho with slices of baguette, dried in a dry frying pan and grated garlic. And even better - with bruschetta! The same crisp bread slices, but, apart from garlic, complemented by a variety of vegetables and herbs. And for those who are very hungry and gazing with doubt on a plate with a light tomato soup, we will supplement gazpacho with hearty bruschetta with cheese or ham.
How to cook a variety of options Bruschetta I told in one of his recipes.
Colorful Italian sandwiches go great with Spanish soup - what looks like it tastes like! Gazpacho with bruschetta is a true delight for both gourmet and esthete. Try it yourself, and you will also love Mediterranean cuisine!
