Chilled Gazpacho Shooters
Refreshing cold tomato soup served in shot glasses with cucumber and herb garnish
- 2 lbsripe tomatoes(cored and quartered)
- 1English cucumber(peeled, seeded, chopped)
- 1red bell pepper(seeded and chopped)
- 0.25 cupred onion(chopped)
- 2 clovesgarlic
- 3 tbspsherry vinegar
- 0.25 cupextra virgin olive oil
- 1 tspkosher salt
- 0.25 tspblack pepper
- 24shot glasses
- 0.5 cupcucumber(finely diced, for garnish)
- 2 tbspfresh basil(chiffonade, for garnish)
Gazpacho must be made at least 2 hours ahead; can be made up to 3 days ahead. Flavor improves overnight. Pour into glasses just before serving.
- 1Combine tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, onion, and garlic in blender
- 2Blend until smooth
- 3With blender running, drizzle in olive oil
- 4Add sherry vinegar, salt, and pepper
- 5Strain through fine-mesh sieve for silky texture (optional)
- 6Refrigerate at least 2 hours until very cold
- 7Taste and adjust seasoning
- 8Pour into shot glasses
- 9Top each with diced cucumber and basil
- 10Serve immediately
Use the ripest, most flavorful tomatoes you can find. Sherry vinegar is traditional - don't substitute balsamic. Straining creates a smoother texture but chunky is also authentic. The soup should be very cold - chill the glasses too. A drizzle of olive oil on top is classic.
Gazpacho is one of Spain's oldest documented dishes, originating in Andalusia in the country's south, where it developed as a practical cold meal for agricultural workers and travelers in the intense Mediterranean summer heat. Its earliest documented forms, appearing in sources from the medieval period, were based on stale bread, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, and water — a simple, sustaining emulsion that needed no cooking. Arab influence on Andalusian cooking during the period of Moorish rule (711–1492 CE) introduced almonds, vinegar-based sauces, and the spice combinations that characterize early gazpacho. Tomatoes and peppers arrived in Spain from the Americas following Columbus's voyages in 1492, and the distinctly red, tomato-based gazpacho familiar today emerged gradually through the 17th and 18th centuries as New World vegetables were incorporated into the Andalusian pantry. By the 19th century the tomato-based version had become the standard across southern Spain. The shooter format — gazpacho served in small shot glasses or espresso cups as a passed hors d'oeuvre — is a modern interpretation that emerged in Spanish tapas culture and was popularized internationally by chefs of the nueva cocina española movement in the 1980s and 1990s. The chilled presentation preserves the essential character of the original: a cold, intensely flavored blend of summer produce eaten without utensils.