Cold soup for summer

Nothing beats the pleasure of slurping your soup, with fresh veggies, meat or noodles floating in an aromatic broth. Summer, however, is a big turn-off for this belly-warming culinary experience. Cold soups are a different story altogether. These chilled, colourful and refreshing soups with seasonal fruits, veggies and berries are just what could help you beat the sweltering heat this summer. So, if you are craving soup, don't let the temperatures bog you down.

While we could make and chill our favourite versions of warm soup, there is a different league of cold soups which we shouldn't miss out on. The one that rules the roost among cold soups is the gazpacho from Andalusia in Spain. An uncooked soup made of raw vegetables, stale bread, garlic and olive oil, gazpacho has a dedicated following in Spain, neighbouring Portugal, and now, in the global culinary scene. Often referred to as a 'salad soup', gazpacho was known as a peasant dish because it was meant to get the maximum out of frugal ingredients. As time passed, and the soup went around the world, richer ingredients like avocados, watermelon, cucumber, grapes and even seafood made their way into the bowl. Gazpachos are essentially of three types—red, white and green. While the fundamental ingredients remain the same, an extra dose of certain ingredients lend them different characters. While tomatoes lend red gazpacho its 'pink-red' colour, the white version is a blend of bread, green grapes, blanched almonds and cucumber. Its green cousin contains cucumber, spinach, herbs and avocados.

Making a serving of gazpacho is a 10-minute job if you have the ingredients ready. The most popular red classic gazpacho is high on tomatoes. To get going, toss the cucumbers, bell peppers, spring onions, garlic, white bread (soak it in water for few minutes) and olive oil into a blender and blend to a fine purée. To this, add tomatoes, or puréed tomatoes and blend to a smooth consistency. Add a generous splash of red vinegar, and adjust taste with salt and pepper. Add toppings of your choice. A handful of bread croutons will lend a crunch.

To master the perfect gazpacho, use fresh, ripe vegetables. Also, when you add cucumber and peppers, de-seed them well so that the seeds don't alter the taste when blended. While it may be easier to throw in the tomatoes with their skin, blanch them and remove the skin before puréeing. Also remember, gazpacho is no smoothie, neither is it a watered-down vegetable puree. This smooth emulsion requires little water because cucumbers and tomatoes will lend their moisture to the recipe. The secret to the right fluffy texture is to be generous with good olive oil, lots of it. While red vinegar is used regularly, sherry wine is the best choice as gazpacho is an Andalusian dish.

Good things are best waited for. So, resist your temptation to dunk a spoon into the freshly prepared gazpacho, or to just throw in some ice cubes to chill it. Refrigerate it for a few hours to let the flavours come through. Serve chilled on a hot summer afternoon.