A cooling bowl of gaspacho can come as a relief in the middle of a hot Lisbon summer day. The Spanish version of this chilled soup is often made with onion, which usually doesn’t feature in the Portuguese recipe. Some older recipes include a slice of slightly stale bread, soaked in water, added along with the vegetables before blitzing, which gives the soup a hearty, creamy texture.
Gaspacho is sometimes served with diced or sautéed ham scattered over the top. London’s favourite Portuguese chef, Nuno Mendes, has a clever idea, and suggests serving gaspacho not as a soup, but unblended and as a relish to go with grilled fish.
The quickest way to peel tomatoes is to draw a cross with a sharp knife across the top of each one, then submerge them for 30 seconds–1 minute in boiling water, which makes it easy to slip off the skins.