Tomatillo Gazpacho

In the South, growing your own vegetables and herbs is just a way of life. I’ve always believed that the best dishes start from what you can pull straight from the garden, and tomatoes are always in abundance.

A great way to enjoy fresh tomato flavor is in gazpacho. I have tried traditional red tomato gazpacho before, but I wanted to put my own spin on it with something a little brighter and more unexpected. I started with the idea of using green heirloom tomatoes, but at the time, my grocer didn’t have any, so I thought, why not use tomatillos? And, with that, I created this Tomatillo Gazpacho.

You’ll find tomatillos in their husk, which you’ll want to remove and then rinse with cold water as a sticky residue will be on the skin. Used raw they tend to be acidic and tart, but cooking them mellows those attributes. Using fresh tomatillos gives this gazpacho a zesty and tangy flavor that is refreshing and really wakes up your taste buds.           

What makes gazpacho so perfect is that it’s basically what you’d get if a salad and a soup had a baby. It’s light, fresh and the perfect cool appetizer for warmer days.

Prepare the Ingredients

The tomatillos and English cucumber are the stars of this gazpacho. Start by using the Trimmer to give the tomatillos a rough chop. The knife’s sharp Double-D® edge glides easily through their slightly firm skin, making it perfect for quick and easy slicing.

Next move on to the cucumber. Use the 7″ Santoku to trim off the ends, slice it lengthwise and scoop out the seeds before chopping. This knife’s wide blade and sharp edge make it fast and simple to work through medium-sized vegetables like cucumbers.

For the garlic, grab the 7-5/8″ Petite Chef. It’s a go-to prep knife that handles small tasks like mincing garlic with precision and ease.

Finish by chopping the rest of the ingredients, including the bell pepper and fresh herbs. Since everything will be blended later, there’s no need to worry about perfect cuts. A quick rough chop will do the trick.

Making the Gazpacho

One of the most important steps in this Tomatillo Gazpacho recipe is letting the vegetables sit with the salt. In this process, the salt helps draw out their natural juices, creating more vibrant flavor once everything is blended. To achieve this, combine the tomatillos, cucumber, bell pepper, herbs, garlic and salt in a large bowl and mix well.

As the salt works its magic, you’ll start to notice some liquid pooling at the bottom of the bowl after about 20 minutes. That’s exactly what you want, because it means the vegetables are releasing their flavor and creating the base for a bright, refreshing gazpacho.

Once the vegetables are ready, pour in the broth, olive oil, vinegar and lime juice, then stir until everything is well combined.

Next it’s time to blend. Working in batches, add the mixture to a blender and blend on medium-high speed until smooth, about 45 seconds to one minute per batch.

When the Tomatillo Gazpacho is ready, serve it immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours to let the taste deepen even further. It’s the kind of dish that feels like spring in every spoonful, and is full of garden goodness.