Recipe: gazpacho by Angela Clutton
The best gazpachos are made with seasonal tomatoes and served super-cold

The best gazpachos have several characteristics in common, said Angela Clutton: they are made with seasonal tomatoes, they are served super-cold, and they use a really good sherry vinegar.
Serve with the sherry vinegar bottle on the table too, so that people can add that all-important finishing touch of flavour and balance. I like my gazpacho quite thick, so that is how this comes – thin it down with water, if you prefer. There is no need to skin the tomatoes as they will be blended and strained before serving.
Ingredients: serves 4-6
- 1kg very ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 cucumber, peeled and chopped
- 1 green pepper, deseeded and chopped
- 80g slightly stale white or brown bread, torn into pieces
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 3 tbsp sherry vinegar, plus extra to taste
- 125ml extra-virgin olive oil
For the garnish (optional)
- chopped hard-boiled egg
- chopped spring onion
- chopped cucumber
- chopped mint croutons
- sherry vinegar
Method
- Place the tomatoes in a large bowl with the cucumber, green pepper, bread pieces, garlic, sherry vinegar (I recommend using a really good one, such as Valdespino at Brindisa) and half of the oil. Add a good pinch of salt, mix to combine, then cover and chill for about 2 hours.
- Transfer to a blender and combine all the ingredients, adding the rest of the olive oil.
- Season and strain into a bowl through a fine sieve, pushing with a spoon to get as much through as you can. Taste for seasoning – remember that chilling dulls the seasoning slightly – and take a look at the resulting soup. If it is too thick for your liking, you can thin it down at this stage with some water.
- Chill until needed, then serve in small bowls or cups with a drizzle of sherry vinegar on top and your choice of garnishes, arranged on the table so each person can help themselves.
- Alternative: rather than sherry vinegar, try finishing with a good balsamic, tomato balsamic, maple vinegar or cucumber vinegar.
Recipe from boroughmarket.org.uk, a website featuring recipes inspired by produce at the London food market. Angela Clutton is a food writer and presenter, and author of “Borough Market: The Knowledge”. Photography: Kim Lightbody.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for the Food & Drink newsletter for recipes, reviews and recommendations
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Palestine Action: protesters or terrorists?
Talking Point Damaging RAF equipment at Brize Norton blurs line between activism and sabotage, but proscription is a drastic step
-
Trump's strikes on Iran: a 'spectacular success'?
In Depth Military humiliations 'expose the brittleness' of Tehran's ageing regime, but risk reinforcing its commitment to its nuclear program
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Lovestuck: a 'warm-hearted' musical with a 'powerhouse score'
The Week Recommends Team behind the hit podcast My Dad Wrote a Porno have created a hilarious show about a disastrous viral Tinder date
-
Outrageous: glossy Mitford family drama is full of 'fun, fashion and froth'
The Week Recommends Adaptation of Mary Lovell's biography examines the scandalous lives of the aristocratic sisters
-
F1: The Movie – a fun but formulaic 'corporate tie-in'
Talking Point Brad Pitt stars as a washed up racing driver returning three decades after a near-fatal crash
-
Lost Boys: a 'sobering' journey to the heart of the manosphere
The Week Recommends James Bloodworth examines the 'cranks and hucksters' making money through 'masculine discontent'
-
6 productivity-ready homes with great offices
Feature Featuring an office with a gas fireplace in Oregon and a shared workspace with wraparound windows in Massachusetts
-
Critics' choice: Carrying the flag
Feature The best barbecue in town, Bradley Cooper's cheesesteak restaurant, and more
-
Film review: Materialists
Feature Two suitors seek to win over a jaded matchmaker