Salmorejo

Name: Salmorejo
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: 1 kg very ripe tomatoes; 200 g stale close-crumbed bread; 1 small garlic clove; 150 ml extra virgin olive oil; 1 tbsp sherry vinegar; 1½ tsp salt; Croutons and green olives, to serve; Chives or parsley, to finish

Local name: Salmorejo

A chilled Cordoban tomato cream thickened with stale bread and emulsified with olive oil until pale pink and velvety.

Published on 10 April 2026·Updated on 10 September 2026

Vegan#tomato#bread#chilled#andalusia#olive oil

AI-generated image, not a photograph of the dish

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 0 min
Total: 20 min
Serves: 4
Difficulty: Easy

Method

Quarter the tomatoes and blend them thoroughly, then pass the purée through a fine sieve if you want a perfectly smooth result.
Tear the bread into pieces, pour the tomato over it and leave to soak for 20 minutes until completely saturated.
Add the garlic and salt, then blend at full speed for 2 minutes to a uniform cream.
With the motor running, trickle in the olive oil in a very thin stream until the colour pales to salmon pink, the sign that the emulsion has taken.
Stir in the sherry vinegar, adjust the salt, and chill for at least 2 hours.
Serve very cold in deep bowls, topped with golden croutons, chopped green olives and a final drizzle of oil.

You judge salmorejo by its colour: if it stays bright red, the oil went in too fast to emulsify. This version skips the usual boiled egg and jamón without losing any of its richness.

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Nutrition per serving

Calories: 489 kcal
Protein: 7.7 g
Fat: 36.3 g
Carbohydrate: 36.1 g
Fibre: 4.2 g

An estimate computed from the recipe quantities and the USDA food composition database. Real values vary with the products used.

Frequently asked questions

My salmorejo stayed bright red instead of turning pink. Why?

The oil went in too fast for the emulsion to take. It has to trickle in a very thin stream with the blender running, until the colour pales towards salmon. To rescue it, blend again adding a small ladle of the mixture back on top of the oil.

What kind of bread works, and can I swap it?

You want stale close-crumbed bread that soaks up the tomato without dissolving. An airy, open crumb or a fresh baguette gives a foamy, unstable texture. A good stale gluten-free loaf works too, though you may need to adjust the tomato.

How do I serve it without the usual egg and jamón?

This version leans on the golden croutons and chopped green olives for the crunch and salt those toppings used to bring. The final drizzle of olive oil at the table matters as much as the oil emulsified into the soup.

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