Authentic Gazpacho Recipe

This delicious authentic gazpacho is the Andalusian version of the classic Spanish cold soup. It’s blended until smooth with ripe summer tomatoes, cucumber, Cubanelle pepper, and a piece of bread. I prep it in just 20 minutes, then let it chill for at least 4 hours to create the most delicious cold and creamy soup your whole family will love.

Authentic Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a cold, uncooked Spanish soup from the Andalusia region in the south of Spain. It’s made from raw tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and stale bread. The traditional version is also called Andalusian gazpacho, and it is the one most people mean when they say the word. It is also the only version I have seen that puts stale bread into the soup itself.

The version I made is the classic Andalusian one, blended smooth, and finished with a plate of fresh garnishes. My recipe is seriously very easy. Rough-chop the vegetables into a blender and blend them down on low speed. Then add the olive oil, water, champagne vinegar, salt, white pepper, and torn bread. From ther blend on high until the soup is completely smooth. You can strain it if you want the silkiest finish. Regardless, chill it at least 4 hours, then ladle into cold bowls and top with the diced red onion, granny smith apple, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, chives, and a drizzle of olive oil.

The trick I picked up outside the restaurant is putting the bread inside the blender. Don’t skip it though because it really does make this recipe. We didn’t do that at Cardwells, and I wish we had, because it takes an already good soup and gives it real body and a creamy mouthfeel without a drop of dairy. Sound good, let’s cook.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Here is the list with what each ingredient brings to my gazpacho soup and where a swap is fine:

• Fresh tomatoes – Ripe, in-season tomatoes are the backbone of the whole soup. They bring the sweetness, the tang, and the fruitiness. Any fresh in-season variety will work. If the tomato is not worth eating on its own with a little salt, it’s not going to be worth blending into this soup.
• English cucumber – Cools the whole soup down and cuts the tang of the tomatoes. Plus it thins it out without watering it out. English, Persian, or American cucumber are all fine. Be sure to peel the American if the skin is thick or waxy.
• Cubanelle pepper – Adds a sweet, crisp, very-gentle-heat pepper flavor that keeps the soup vegetable-forward instead of sharp. A sweet banana pepper is the closest swap, and an Anaheim works too.
• Shallot – Adds a soft umami-onion note without the sharp punch of a raw white onion. Peeled white, red, or sweet onion is the swap if there is no shallot in the drawer.
• Garlic cloves – I use it for a hint of sharpness to balance out the flavors and just adds that good old garlicky goodness. Fresh cloves only; pre-minced jar garlic is not the same thing.
• Olive oil – The fat that gives the soup its creaminess and its finish. A good peppery olive oil shows up in the flavor of the final bowl.
• Water – Thins the blend to a spoonable soup consistency and balances the concentration of the tomatoes and vinegar. Cold tap is fine.
• Champagne vinegar – The brightness that lifts the vegetables and makes the whole soup taste more like itself. Sherry vinegar is the classic Andalusian substitute and honestly the more traditional pick. White wine or distilled white vinegar are the next-closest swaps.
• Bread – This is the trick the whole soup rides on. Good bread blended into the base gives the soup its body, its creaminess, and the pouring texture you want out of the ladle. A day-old baguette, French bread, or Italian loaf is what I reach for. Honestly, anything from a bakery works, and homemade tomato focaccia trim is a bonus. Do not use wonder bread, lol.
• Salt and ground white pepper – Seasoned to taste at the end after the soup has blended. White pepper keeps the color of the soup even without the black flecks.

Optional garnishes:

The fresh toppings are what take this soup from good to “what am I eating good.” Don’t skip them!

• Small-diced red onion – A little sharpness on top for contrast against the smooth soup.
• Small-diced granny smith apple – The garnish that surprises everyone. Granny smith adds a gentle sweet-tart pop that lines up with the tomato and vinegar. It just makes the whole bowl taste brighter than it did without it. Do not skip this one.
• Thinly sliced cucumber – A cool, crisp piece on the spoon.
• Thinly sliced cherry tomatoes for a pop of sweetness across the top.
• Thinly sliced chives add a punch of green and very subtly onion umami flavors.
• Olive oil for drizzling – A finishing pour right before serving.

How to Make Authentic Gazpacho

Prep the vegetables: Stem and quarter the tomatoes, roughly chop the cucumber, seed and roughly chop the cubanelle. Peel the shallot and drop everything into a blender with the garlic cloves.

Break the vegetables down on low: Start the blender on low speed and let the vegetables break down into a rough purée before anything else goes in.

Add the fat, acid, and bread, then blend on high: Add the olive oil, water, champagne vinegar, salt, white pepper, and the torn bread. Blend on high until the soup is completely smooth with no chunks left at all. The bread is the reason the texture works here.

Strain through a fine mesh (optional): If you want the silkiest possible texture, pass the soup through a chinois or a fine mesh strainer. Set it over a bowl and push it through with the back of a ladle until only pulp is left in the strainer. This is a traditional restaurant finish and the version I default to. However, the unstrained soup is fine too, and most people will not know the difference.

Chill at least 4 hours: Transfer to a container, cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours, until the soup is fully cold all the way through and the flavors have had time to marry. You can eat it as soon as it is cold, but if you can hold out a full 24 hours, gosh does the flavor deepen.

Garnish and serve: Give the soup a quick whisk in case the water and oil separated in the fridge, ladle into cold bowls, and top with the diced red onion, granny smith apple, sliced cucumber, sliced cherry tomatoes, chives, and a generous drizzle of olive oil right before it hits the table.

Serving Suggestions

I love serving this gazpacho as the opener to a Spanish-inspired summer meal on a Saturday when the farmers market is overflowing with ripe tomatoes. I start with a small chilled bowl of gazpacho, followed by pan con tomate and a warm cast iron of patatas bravas in the middle of the table.

For the main course, the options are endless, but the other day I served it with grilled lobster tails, and it was absolutely incredible. Grilled chicken thighs are another one of my favorite pairings if you’re looking for something more casual. To finish the meal, I highly recommend my blueberry cobbler or, if you ask my daughter, her new favorite no-bake cheesecake.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: I make this a full day before I plan to serve it whenever the schedule allows, because the 24-hour rest in the fridge is when the soup goes from good to great.

How to Store: I keep the soup in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The garnishes stay separate in their own containers so the diced apple, onion, and cucumber stay fresh and crisp until the bowl is ready to go out.

How to Reheat: No reheating on this one. The soup is served cold, straight from the fridge.

How to Freeze: I can push this to 2 months in the freezer in a sealed container. Thaw overnight in the fridge, and expect the soup to break on the thaw. A quick spin in the blender before serving pulls the emulsion back together and the soup pours like it did on day one.

More Summer Recipes

• Panzanella salad
• Summer pasta salad
• Watermelon feta salad with grilled flank steak
• Tomato basil pasta
• Homemade pineapple salsa