Gazpacho () or gaspacho (), also called Andalusian gazpacho, is a cold

soup Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot (but may be cool or cold), that is made by combining ingredients of meat or vegetables with stock, milk, or water. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ing ...

and drink made of raw, blended vegetables. It originated in the southern regions of the Iberian peninsula and spread into other areas. Gazpacho is widely eaten in Spain and Portugal, particularly during hot summers, since it is refreshing and cool. Although there are other recipes called ''gazpacho'', such as ''

gazpacho manchego Torta de gazpacho is a type of torta, or flat bread, used to prepare a dish called ''gazpacho'' or ''gazpacho manchego'' in La Mancha and Southeast Spain, including Murcia and parts of the autonomous community of Valencia. A ''torta de g ...

'', the standard usage implies a

. There are also a number of dishes that are closely related and often considered variants thereof, such as ajoblanco, salmorejo, pipirrana,

porra antequerana Porra antequerana is a part of the gazpacho family of soups originating in Andalusia, in southern Spain. Porra antequerana consists of tomato and dried bread. As it is much thicker than its culinary cousins, gazpacho and salmorejo, it is more com ...

(closer to a bread soup), and cojondongo.

History

There are many theories as to the origin of gazpacho, including one that says it was a soup of

bread Bread is a staple food prepared from a dough of flour (usually wheat) and water, usually by baking. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cultures' diet. It is one of the oldest human-made f ...

olive oil Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...

, water, vinegar, and

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Allium fistulosum, Welsh onion and Allium chinense, Chinese onion. It is native to South A ...

that arrived in Spain with the Romans. The word "gazpacho" may come from the Latin adjective caccabaceus, derived from caccabus ("cauldron"), attested in the works of Tertulian, Zeno of Verona and others. This word was applied in ancient Rome to a type of bread very similar to the

torta de gazpacho Torta de gazpacho is a type of torta, or flat bread, used to prepare a dish called ''gazpacho'' or ''gazpacho manchego'' in La Mancha and Southeast Spain, including Murcia and parts of the autonomous community of Valencia. A ''torta de g ...

. Once in Spain, it became a part of southern cuisine, particularly in Córdoba, Seville or

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

Castilian kingdoms, using

stale Staling, or "going stale", is a chemical and physical process in bread and similar foods that reduces their palatability - stale bread is dry and hard. Mechanism and effects Staling is not simply a drying-out process due to evaporation. One ...

bread, garlic, olive oil, salt, and vinegar, similar to ajoblanco. During the 19th century, red gazpacho was created when tomatoes were added to the ingredients. This version spread internationally and remains commonly known. There are many modern variations of gazpacho with avocados,

cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated Vine#Horticultural climbing plants, creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical Fruit, fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.

parsley Parsley, or garden parsley (''Petroselinum crispum'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to the central and eastern Mediterranean region (Sardinia, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Turkey, southern Italy, Greece, Por ...

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

, watermelon, grapes, meat

stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especially AmE'' one of the shares into which ownership of a company ...

seafood Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans, prominently including fish and shellfish. Shellfish include various species of molluscs (e.g. bivalve molluscs such as clams, oysters and mussels, and cephalopods such as octopus an ...

, and other ingredients instead of tomatoes and bread.

Ingredients and preparation

Most gazpacho includes stale bread, tomato, cucumbers, onion, bell peppers, garlic, olive oil,

wine vinegar Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains 5–8% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting simple sugars to eth ...

, water, and salt. Northern recipes often include

cumin Cumin ( or , or Article title
) (''Cuminum cyminum'') is a

smoked sweet paprika). Traditionally, gazpacho was made by pounding the vegetables in a mortar with a pestle; this more laborious method is still sometimes used as it helps keep the gazpacho cool and avoids the foam and silky consistency of smoothie versions made in blenders or food processors. A traditional way of preparation is to pound garlic cloves in a mortar, add a little soaked stale bread, then olive oil and salt, to make a paste. Next, very ripe tomatoes and vinegar are added to this paste. In the days before refrigeration, the gazpacho was left in an unglazed earthenware pot to cool by evaporation, with the addition of some water. Gazpacho may be served alone or with garnishes, such as hard-boiled eggs, chopped ham (in the salmorejo variety from Córdoba), chopped almonds, cumin crushed with mint, orange segments, finely chopped green bell peppers, onion, tomato or cucumber.King Gazpacho, ''Andalucia'' magazine.
Retrieved 1 April 2022. In Extremadura, local ham was added to the gazpacho itself rather than as a garnish; this is called . Andalusian sources say that gazpacho should be slightly chilled, but not iced.

Variations

The ingredients, texture, and thickness of gazpacho vary regionally and between different cooks. Similar cold raw soups such as arjamolho in Portugal,

and ajoblanco, are also popular in Andalusia, although not as widespread as gazpacho. Gazpacho and salmorejo are especially similar since they are both tomato-based cold soups that are widely popular in Spain; the main difference between gazpacho and salmorejo is the culinary technique used since gazpacho is a soup whereas salmorejo is an emulsion. In addition, while both dishes share the main ingredients of tomato, olive oil, bread, and garlic, gazpacho can also be prepared with cucumber, peppers, and vinegar, whereas salmorejo cannot. ''

Gazpacho manchego Torta de gazpacho is a type of torta, or flat bread, used to prepare a dish called ''gazpacho'' or ''gazpacho manchego'' in La Mancha and Southeast Spain, including Murcia and parts of the autonomous community of Valencia. A ''torta de g ...

'', despite its name, is a meat

stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables and ...

, served hot, not a variation on the cold vegetable soup.

In Spain

The original recipe using bread, water, vinegar, oil, and salt is traditional in the Iberian Peninsula, perhaps going back to Roman times. Every central and southern region has its own variety. The humble gazpacho became a very deeply rooted food for peasants and

shepherd A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' 'herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations, i ...

s in Spain. The basic gazpacho gave rise to many variants, some also called gazpacho, others not; some authors have tried to classify all these variations. Gazpachos may be classified by colour: the most usual red ones (which contain tomato), white ones (which contain no tomato, but include dried fruits), and green ones (which are white but contain some spices that make them green). These variants have their basic ingredients in common, including

paste which works as an emulsifier,

, vinegar and salt. In addition to the traditional ingredients, red fruits such as

, melon, etc., may be added, making the gazpacho a bit sweeter. Gazpacho may be served as a starter, main dish, or

tapa Tapa, TAPA, Tapas or Tapasya may refer to: Media *Tapas (website), a webtoon site, formerly known as Tapastic * ''Tapas'' (film), a 2005 Spanish film * ''Tapasya'' (1976 film), an Indian Hindi-language film * ''Tapasya'' (1992 film), a Nepalese f ...

Arranque roteño

A popular variation comes from the town of

Rota Rota or ROTA may refer to: Places * Rota (island), in the Marianas archipelago * Rota (volcano), in Nicaragua * Rota, Andalusia, a town in Andalusia, Spain * Naval Station Rota, Spain People * Rota (surname), a surname (including a list of peop ...

in the

province of Cádiz Cádiz is a Provinces of Spain, province of southern Spain, in the southwestern part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. It is the southernmost part of mainland Spain, as well as the southernmost part of conti ...

. During times of drought, there was not enough water to make gazpacho; thus, arranque has the same ingredients as gazpacho, but requires less water and bread, making it a sort of cream. Some people add more bread until it takes on the consistency of a dip.

Extremaduran variations

In Extremadura, gazpachos are a kind of purée or thick gazpacho known as ''cojondongo'', or ''cojondongo del gañán'', made of breadcrumbs, garlic, oil, and vinegar, then topped with

chopped onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...

, tomato and peppers.

La Mancha variations

Gazpacho manchego, as its name implies, is made in the east region of La Mancha, in Albacete and nearby areas, and is popular in other areas in the center and southwest of the country. It is a meat stew, whose main ingredients are small

game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

animals or birds such as

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

, hare, quail, or pigeon, and

flatbread A flatbread is a bread made with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pizza and pita bread. Flatbreads ran ...

, and may include garlic, tomatoes, and mushrooms. It is cooked in a cauldron and served hot. Another well-known variant in La Mancha is gazpacho de pastor or galiano. Some other hot meat or fish dishes from other regions are called gazpacho (gazpacho jumillano, gazpacho de Yecla, gazpacho de Requena, etc.)

Castilian variations

Gazpacho is often eaten during the very hot and dry summers in Castilla y León. The gazpacho made in

La Moraña LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

in the province of

Ávila Ávila (, , ) is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Ávila. It lies on the right bank of the Adaja river. Located more than 1,130 m abov ...

has large pieces of vegetables floating in a watery soup.Wikibooks: recipe for gazpacho morañiego

References

{{Soups Cold soups Spanish soups and stews Andalusian cuisine Portuguese cuisine New Mexican cuisine Tomato dishes Vegan cuisine Bread soups Vegetable soups Garlic dishes