Salmorejo Recipe

Prepare tomatoes

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Score a small X at the base of each tomato. Blanch tomatoes 20–30 seconds, then transfer to an ice bath. Peel and discard skins, remove cores, and roughly chop tomatoes. Reserve juices.

Soak bread

Place torn bread pieces in a bowl and pour 50 ml of the reserved tomato juices (or cold water if needed) over them. Let sit 5 minutes until softened.

Combine and blend

In a blender or food processor, add peeled garlic, softened bread (squeeze out excess liquid if extremely soggy), chopped tomatoes with their juices, vinegar, and 60 ml of olive oil. Purée on high until completely smooth and emulsified, about 2–3 minutes. Stop and scrape down sides as needed.

Adjust texture and season

Taste and stir in salt. If the soup is too thick, add up to 100 ml cold water a little at a time until you reach a thick, velvety but pourable consistency. With the blender running on low, drizzle remaining 40 ml olive oil to further emulsify and create a glossy texture.

Chill

Transfer the salmorejo through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl or pitcher, pressing with a spatula to remove seeds/fibers for extra smoothness (optional). Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 2 hours or until very cold. Chilling concentrates flavors—taste again and adjust salt or vinegar before serving.

Make toasted croutons

Heat 2 tbs olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add bread cubes and toast, stirring frequently, until golden and crisp, 5–7 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel and season lightly with salt.

Prepare toppings

If using jamón serrano, finely chop and briefly warm in the skillet for 30 seconds to release aroma (optional). If using hard-boiled egg yolks, mash or crumble them coarsely.

Assemble and finish

Ladle chilled salmorejo into bowls. Sprinkle with toasted croutons, scatter chopped jamón and crumbled egg yolk if using, grind black pepper to taste, and finish each bowl with a generous drizzle (about 1 tbs) of extra-virgin olive oil.