Watermelon Gazpacho

Gazpacho is one of the stars of Spanish gastronomy during the summer season. It’s an easy way to consume fruit and vegetables.

Like many dishes, it all starts with the necessity of not wasting food. The peasants who used to work in the fields during the 16th century would soak the hard bread with water, which they would add to mashed tomatoes, salt, pepper, and vinegar.

The traditional ingredients of the Gazpacho recipe as we know it today are: tomatoes, red or green pepper, cucumber, onion, garlic, bread, olive oil, salt, and vinegar. But in modern cuisine, it’s possible to find as many versions as there are colors of the rainbow.

How to Choose the Perfect Watermelon

When I was a child, I used to go to the supermarket with my mother. It wasn’t uncommon for me to see her gently hitting the watermelon with her knuckles to see if it was ripe. She had a very good ability to choose them, as we always enjoyed the sweetest and juiciest watermelon of the market. I am sure of it. 

So, if you are walking past the fruit section in your market and you see someone gently hitting the watermelons, you will know what that awkward person is doing.

Below are a few tips to choose the perfect watermelon:

1. Shape– Preferably, choose as round as possible as this will mean that it has received a better proportion of sun and water.
2. Color– Go for yellow marks. Avoid bright green or yellow watermelons and choose those that are darker. Also, for those that have a yellow patch around the base, wait until the patch is in an intense yellow.
3. Skin– Avoid choosing watermelons that have cracks or dents as they are perfect hiding places for grime and dirt.
4. Sound– A ripe watermelon will have a hollow sound. Unripe watermelons will have a high-pitch sound.
5. Weight– A heavy watermelon for its size is a good hint that it’s ripe.

Ingredients

• 4 cups (600 grams) watermelon
• 4 medium-sized (500 grams) ripe red tomatoes
• 1 small (160 grams) cucumber
• 1 lime 
• ¼ cup (50 grams) olive oil
• 3 mint leaves
• ½ teaspoon pink salt
• 5 ¼ tsp (25 grams) apple cider vinegar 
• Black pepper (optional)

Instructions

Step 1 – Wash the Vegetables and Fruit

As mentioned in other articles, washing your ingredients is very important, and we tend not to give it the importance that it needs. So, put your vegetables and the mint in a glass bowl with water and add vinegar and baking soda. Let it rest at least 10 minutes to make sure that all the grime and bacteria are gone.

Washing the watermelon could be challenging, since putting it inside a bowl is a difficult task. In a small bowl, I put 2 tablespoons of baking soda, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, and ½ lemon juice to make a paste. Rub the watermelon with this paste using your fingers or a clean toothbrush. Once all the vegetables are washed, put them in a strainer or dry them with a clean cloth.

Step 2 – Add the Watermelon

Cut the watermelon and place the pieces in your processor. 

There are quite a few varieties of watermelon. I tend to use seedless because they are very popular at the supermarkets. You can use one with seeds, just remember to remove the seeds before adding the flesh to the food processor.

Step 3 – Add Tomatoes 

Cut the tomatoes into quarters and add them to your processor.

Step 4 – Add the Cucumber

Peel the cucumber and slice it. Add it to the processor.

Step 5 – Add the Mint

Add three mint leaves.

Step 6 – Add the Lime Juice and Salt

Add the juice of a lime and ½ teaspoon of Himalayan pink salt.

Step 7 – Add Olive Oil and Vinegar

Add the olive oil and the vinegar to the mix, as well as a hint of black pepper.

Step 8 – Blend the Ingredients.

Blend the ingredients in the blender at high speed, between 4-5 minutes.

Step 9 – Store in the Fridge

Once it is blended, store the gazpacho in the fridge for a minimum of one hour. Serve cold.

I usually store it in a Sistema narrow tupperware, and it works very well.

Traditionally, gazpacho is served with toppings (croutons, chopped boiled egg, or sometimes thinly chopped red or green peppers). Croutons are my favorite. 

Options

This week I was experimenting with different fruits to make different tasty and summery gazpachos. The options are quite flexible. 

Bread is one of the traditional Spanish Gazpacho ingredients. Frequently, people use stale bread so as not to waste it. 

So, if you have hard bread that you prefer not to trash, soak it in water and add it to the gazpacho (we like to use French bread). Add one of your pieces (25-30gr), and once it is blended, you can see if you prefer to add a bit more to make the gazpacho thicker.

Presentation 

Gazpacho is usually served in a bowl with croutons. You can also serve it in a deep plate as an appetizer.

If you have guests and would like to serve gazpacho in a different way, you can use cocktail glasses to serve them with a mint leaf or with very small cubes of watermelon.

Cookware

Chopping Board

I use a wooden chopping board. Apparently, they are better than plastic chopping boards as they are easier to clean and they don’t retain as much grime.

Glass Salad Bowl

As usual, I use a glass bowl to wash my vegetables and fruits.

Sistema KLIP IT Plus Cracker Food Storage

I love the Sistema food storage system, and I use it to store different things. Every summer, I will take these food containers out and use them to store my gazpacho. They are quick and easy. They have the advantages of a bottle but with a wider opening so I can pour my gazpacho quickly and without mess once it is ready. 

Cocktail Glass

I have used cocktail glasses to make servings a bit more fun than normal.

Conclusion

It has been a pleasure to make this recipe and try the different versions of gazpacho. I really enjoy experimenting while I am cooking, thinking about what will happen if I add an ingredient or playing with different flavor combinations. 

I hope this recipe gives you a wider view about the traditional Spanish recipe and encourages you to create your own version. What would be your perfect combination? I have in my mind my next Gazpacho recipe. Do you have yours?

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