Soups/

Roasted Poblano Gazpacho

Gazpacho al Chile Poblano Asado
Recipe from Season 6, Mexico—One Plate at a Time
Servings: 6
Print

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2poundsripe tomatoes, preferably vine-ripe heirloom tomatoes
  • 2largepoblano chiles
  • 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
  • 1medium (10-ounce) cucumber, peeled
  • 1/3cup chopped cilantro
  • 2large eggs
  • 1/2small white onion, finely chopped
  • 1 1/2cups croutons (I like garlic-flavored croutons)
  • 1/4cup dry red wine
  • 1 thick slice white bread
  • 1tablespoon vinegar, preferably sherry vinegar
  • 2tablespoons olive oil
  • Salt

Instructions

Spread half of the tomatoes and both of the poblanos onto a baking sheet, and roast 4 inches below a preheated broiler until blistered and blackened in spots, about 6 minutes per side. The poblanos may blacken before the tomatoes - remove them as soon as they are done. Cool the tomatoes and poblanos, then pull or rub off the blackened skins. For chiles, pull out the stems and seed pods, then quickly rinse off seeds and stray bits of skin. Scoop the tomatoes into a large bowl, along with any juices on the baking sheet. Roughly chop half of the poblanos and add to the roasted tomatoes. Chop the remainder of the poblanos into 1/4-inch pieces and scoop into another large bowl that you can use for serving.

While the tomatoes and chiles are roasting, roast the garlic directly on a dry griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally, until soft (they'll blacken in spots, too), about 15 minutes. Cool, peel off the papery skin, roughly chop and add to the roasted tomato mixture.

Chop enough of the remaining unroasted tomato into 1/4-inch pieces to yield 1 cup; add to the serving bowl with the poblanos. Chop half of the cucumber into 1/4-inch pieces and add them, too. Top with half of the chopped cilantro and stir everything together. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to serve.

Simmer the eggs in heavily salted water to cover for 9 minutes. Set the pan under cold running water for a couple of minutes, let stand a few minutes more (to ensure they're cool to the center), then peel and finely chop the eggs. Scoop into a small serving bowl, cover and refrigerate. Scoop the onion into a strainer, rinse under cold water, shake off the excess moisture and add to the vegetable mixture. Cover and refrigerate. Lastly, scoop the croutons into a small serving bowl.

Roughly chop the remaining unroasted tomatoes and cucumbers, and scoop them in with the roasted tomato mixture, along with the remaining cilantro, wine, bread, vinegar and olive oil. In batches, scoop into a blender jar and process to a smooth puree. Press through a medium-mesh strainer into a bowl. Stir in about 1 1/2 cups water to give the mixture the consistency of a light cream soup. Taste and season with salt, usually about 2 teaspoons. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, usually about an hour.

Ladle the soup into chilled soup bowls. Sprinkle the garnishes generously with salt, stir, then pass them separately for each guest to add al gusto.

Comments

  1. I’m trying to find a recipe. The show was on 5/8/14 what else you had made with the Roasted Polano Gazpacho .
    The dish was made with chicken, shrimp, mussels, rice and a sauce it was cooked out side on brickes

  2. i love rick bayless, especially how calm & soft spoken he is,
    this is the best food ever, i can t wait to try the phila restaurant,
    be well, joanne~~~

  3. I can’t wait to make this! I think these ingredients blended is genius and what
    a refreshing twist on the same gazpacho. My friends are going to be so jealous
    I come up with another winner! This looks so elegant to serve..Thanks Rick ( I loved
    your show on PBS but we don’t get it anymore in Pittsburgh!)

  4. I accidentally rated this as 2-1/2 stars. I haven’t made this recipe but am definitely planning on trying it. I just clicked the stars thinking it would link to reviews.

  5. Always look forward to checking your suggestions for ingredients I have or can get. We miss you on our channel offerings in Mississippi. Glad you keep working for good food, good taste and sharing with us thru internet.

  6. Hi,
    I was so looking forward to this dish. It is one of my favorites. My wife and I prepared it according to your recipe. It was a real let down. I was expecting a much thicker soup with a heavier flavor. There was adequate heat in the taste but not enough tomato flavor for my taste. As previously stated I found the consistency far too thin. I have eaten other gazpacho preparations and they were quite a bit thicker. Where did we go wrong? Or is this normally of this consistency? Could you possibly give me some hints? I would also point out both I and my wife found the recipe confusing. Some of the directions are not very specific. Thanks for any attention you might give this.
    Very truly,
    Joe Silva

    1. Hi Joe!
      I am so sorry that you found this recipe confusing. Let me know specifically what was confusing and I can help. I am guessing the language about half of the roasted tomato and poblano? Bottom line is that half gets blended in the soup base and the other half gets diced as a garnish for the soup.

      But here are a few pointers that may help some of the specific issues you addressed:
      – For a Richer tomato flavor – make sure you are buying the best quality – ripe tomatoes. Unfortunately, that means you probably won’t find it at your regular supermarket. The best will be found at a farmers market. Whole foods carries heirlooms in the summer that are delicious as well.
      – For the consistency I have three suggestions – One is to make sure that you are using a medium mesh strainer and not a fine mesh strainer. You want some of the texture from the bread and tomatoes, but not all of it. If you are using a medium mesh and it is still too thin for you, I would recommend adding a bit more bread, and then possibly adjusting for more salt. Finally – add more garnishes to make it a chunkier soup, buy extra tomatoes and add diced fresh tomatoes, add more croutons and roasted poblanos and eggs! Mmmmmm, now I want to make this for dinner!

      Hope that this is helpful!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *