Summer is on its way and Salmorejo, my favourite Spanish dish will soon be appearing on menus once again. It is eaten either as a cold thick soup or as a dip and is based on tomato and bread that are mixed together in a mortar and pestle. It´s a cousin of Gazpacho but without the cucumber and it´s not a drink. Originating from Cordoba, my neighbouring province in Andalusia, there is even a street named after it in Cordoba with an authentic Salmorejo recipe in Spanish ceramic tiles under the street name, want to look it up – Calleja del Salmorejo Cordobes.
From its humble beginnings Salmorejo has become a nationwide popular dish, it would have been made with the few ingredients available in their vegetable plot. Nowadays it’s a popular and very healthy dish often found in bars as tapas or rations – raciones.
Salmorejo is made from tomatoes, red and/or green peppers and garlic also vinegar, olive oil and stale bread. It’s served cold and, these days, garnished with diced Spanish Serrano ham or jamon and chopped hard-boiled eggs. The stale bread was a substitute for flour and is used as a thickening agent in many Spanish dishes.
Every chef has their own secret recipe, each sample is a delight, with suprises like bits of sweet orange in some versions or crispy jamon toppings.
You can also use it as a sauce for fish or chicken and it’s great for dipping battered and deep-fried aubergines in.
How to Make Salmorejo
Ingredients
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Red Tomatoes (nice and ripe)
Green and/or Red Pepper
Stale bread crumbs ( added according to the consistency required)
Wine Vinegar (Jerez is the best)
Cold water (add to achieve the consistency you like)
1 or 2 cloves garlic
Salt and Pepper
Preparation
Soak the bread in cold water.
Use a food processor or, traditionally, a mortar and pestle and grind the garlic, the salt and the green and red pepper to a fairly fine paste.
Add four or five tomatoes (for four people) and mix well to a paste,add the soaked bread, having squeezed out the excess water, and mix well into a smooth paste.
Slowly add half a glass of olive oil and mix until its nice and smooth, but at the same time getting runnier.
Now add a splash of vinegar to taste, and mix in well.
Season with salt and pepper, and check the seasoning, adjust accordingly.
Serve chilled, topped with chopped hard-boiled egg and finely diced jamon or crispy bacon if desired.
