It’s time for our annual reminder that gazpacho is the queen of summer cooking, a coolly satisfying remedy for intense, sluggish heat. Our recipe is called best gazpacho, and it delivers on that promise. It’s simple, salty, thick and smooth, with no bobbing cubes of cucumber in sight.
(I never liked those.) More of a drink than a soup, served in frosted glasses or chilled tumblers, gazpacho is perfect when it is too hot to eat but you need cold, salt and lunch all at the same time. Gazpacho is everywhere in Seville, Spain, where this recipe comes from, but it’s not the watered-down salsa or grainy vegetable purée often served in the United States.
This version has no bread and is a creamy orange-pink rather than a lipstick red. That is because a large quantity of olive oil is required for making delicious gazpacho, rather than take-it-or-leave it gazpacho. The emulsion of red tomato juice, palest green cucumber juice and golden olive oil produces the right color and a smooth, almost fluffy texture.
_____ By Julia Moskin Total time: 20 minutes plus chilling time Servings: 8 to 12, about 1 quart INGREDIENTS.
