Gazpacho with shrimp is a delicious meal for a clean eating plant based diet. Skip the shrimp and you’ve got a vegetarian or vegan meal. Perfect for summer meals because it’s a no-cook, make-ahead meal.
Often referred to as a “liquid salad”, Gazpacho bursts with fresh flavors of summer. We add shrimp for a heartier fare.
What is Gazpacho?
Gaspacho is a cold plant-based tomato soup, which at first may sound a little odd. Once you taste it, you’ll be hooked on the savory vegetables, the nutrition and the cooling effect it will have on you on a hot summer day. What a combination! Our twist of Gazpacho with shrimp is not traditional, but why not add a little extra zing and protein?
If you want to be a purist, try our traditional Andalusian Gazpacho which is based on recipes from southern Spain. Gazpacho is served is Andalusia almost like seltzer or soda is served in America. It’s available at tapas bars to convenience stores and is made with a limited amount of ingredients. Our Andalusian Gazpacho does not add any tomato juice, just a little water to thin it out.
Notice the Andalusian Gazpacho is more of an orange color due to less ingredients and the addition of bread.
Gazpacho with shrimp is typically chilled and served in a bowl with an array of topping choices. I’ve kept the vegetables a little chunky to leave some texture. Traditional Gazpacho is pureed perfectly smooth and is often drank from a cup as opposed to eating with a spoon.
Throw it in a thermos for an easy picnic or tailgate idea. It’s easier to keep the shrimp out of the soup if using a thermos, otherwise the shrimp tend to fall to the bottom of the thermos and it’s just harder to pour.
Once you ladle the Gazpacho with shrimp into individual bowls, pour a little additional olive oil and sherry vinegar on top, it brings the soup to life.
How To Make Gazpacho With Shrimp
If you have a blender or a food processor you’ll have this made in 20 minutes, it’s so easy! Buy shelled and deveined shrimp to save time. Or save money and do this yourself but add about 20 minutes to the prep time. See near bottom of post for how to clean and devein shrimp.
Steam the shrimp with Old Bay Seasoning and let cool. Roughly chop the vegetables and pulse in a food processor until the desired consistency. Transfer to a large bowl. I like to leave it a little chunky.
No need to dice the vegetables, just roughly chop and toss in the blender or food processor.
Core and roughly chop the tomatoes, pulse in food processor. You will probably have to do this for both the vegetables and tomaotes in 2 or 3 batches, depending on the size of your food processor or blender.
Puree as smooth as you like. I leave the tomatoes and the vegetables a little chunky for added texture.
Dice the garnishes and you’re done.
What To Serve With Gazpacho With Shrimp
This is a very light meal so many people like to add some more heft to it. That’s one of the reasons we’ve added the shrimp. I also like the shrimp because it blends well with the other ingredients without overpowering with flavor.
Adding some fresh buttered bread or hot garlic toast that can be dipped in the Gazpacho is a nice addition.
Serving a fun grilled cheese or other sandwich goes really well with Gazpacho with shrimp. Try Grown Up Italian Grilled Cheese, Bacon and Tomato Grilled Cheese or a BLT. It’s like the classic hot tomato soup and grilled cheese combo of our youth.
Toppings are a nice addition. Pass the toppings in bowls and let the diners serve themselves. You can even do this with the shrimp to satisfy vegetarians or vegans. And for those that eat gluten free, Gazpacho with shrimp fits the bill.
The toppings I list in the recipe are Greek yogurt (not vegetarian or vegan), chopped cucumber and fresh lemon juice.
Other topping choices are freshly made croutons, cilantro or diced jalapeno. Many recipes call for a chopped hardboiled egg, almonds or chives.
For a beverage serve cold seltzer water, a white wine like Sauvignon blanc, or pop open a cold Corona with lime.
Gazpacho With Shrimp Ingredients
The farmer’s market is your friend for this recipe. Buy the best tomatoes you can afford, they are the star of the show.
Use an English cucumber so that you don’t have to peel or seed it. English cucumbers are longer and come wrapped in plastic. You can use salad cucumbers but you’ll want to peel the tough skin and seed them.
Use your nicer olive oil for this recipe. The olive oil defines the flavor and thickens the soup. I use a peppery oil that I get from Strippaggio, a boutique olive oil store here in Atlanta.
I call for a yellow bell pepper, but any color will do, pick your favorite flavor. If you can find cubanelle ro Anaheim peppers substitute those for a more traditional flavor. Bell peppers are easier to find so that’s why I call for them in this Gazpacho recipe.
Use 30-40 count shrimp, they are big enough to make a statement but small enough to fit on the diners spoon.
How To Clean and Devein Shrimp
You can buy shrimp already peeled and deveined which save you a lot of time and hassle. But you’ll pay for it with your wallet. For those of you like me that want to save money, here’s how to clean, peel and devein shrimp.
Have two empty bowls ready and a plastic bag. Hold the shrimp with legs facing you. Start to squeeze or pinch the legs, then pull the shell back. You may have to do this 2 or 3 times. Near the end, pinch the tail and pull off. Toss the shells in the plastic bag and the shrimp in a bowl.
Keep a small trickle of water running under the faucet. Cut a shallow slit down the back of the shrimp (opposite side from the legs). Some shrimp will be clean, many will have a black vein. Use the tip of the knife to pull the vein out. Then rinse the shrimp under water to get rid of the black intestine and to ensure no shell remains. Toss clean shrimp in the remaining bowl.
How To Freeze Gazpacho With Shrimp
Our Gazpacho with shrimp recipe freezes well. Freezing may lose some texture and the olive oil will separate a bit. You can freeze in a labelled large freezer bags, freezer containers or in individual sizes. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight.
Of if you’ve frozen individual portions, just grab out of the freezer on your way to work and you’ll have perfectly chilled Gazpacho by lunch time. Your colleagues will be jealous.
If using freezer bags, label and then place on a baking tray in the freezer for a couple of hours. This way you can stack the bags for easy storage. It makes a huge difference if you freeze a fair amount of food.
If using glass or plastic containers make sure to leave ½” of head space to allow for expansion.
Freeze Gazpacho with shrimp for up to 3 months for best results. If kept properly stored you can freeze for a year but will lose some texture and quality, but it will be safe to eat.
Gazpacho With Shrimp Plant Based Meal
Gazpacho with shrimp is a delicious meal for a clean eating plant based diet. Skip the shrimp and you’ve got a vegetarian or vegan meal. Perfect for summer meals because it’s a no-cook, make-ahead meal.
Ingredients
Shrimp
- 1 Pound 30-40 count shrimp peeled and deviened
- 2 Tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
- 1/2 Cup Cider vinegar or beer
Soup
- 3 Pounds Best Quality Tomatoes preferably heirloom
- 1 Large English cucumber
- 1 Medium Yellow bell pepper or your favorite color
- 1 small red onion
- 1 medium jalapeno, optional
- 2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil good quality
- 1/4 cup sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons sugar only if tomatoes need a flavor boost
- 1 large lemon
- 2 cups tomato juice I like Hot V8 Juice
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
Instructions
Cook and Cool Shrimp
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If you didn’t purchase already peeled and deveined shrimp, then this is the time to peel and devein. This step will add an additional 20 minutes prep time but will save you money.
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Bring water, vinegar and spice to a boil over medium heat. Stir in shrimp and cover. Steam for 2-3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Keep an eye on it and don't overcook.
Make Gazpacho
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Roughly chop tomatoes and puree in food processor or blender to desired consistency. I like to leave a little chunky. Pour into a large bowl. Depending on the size of your food processor you may have to do this in 2 steps.
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Cut ends off the cucumber and discard. Cut about a 2-inch piece of cucumber that you will dice for the garnish. Roughly chop the remainder of the cucumber. Do the same with the yellow pepper (discarding seeds) and red onion, reserving a little for toppings (about a 1/4 of each) and rough chopping the rest of the vegetables. Add to the food processor.
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Cut the root end off the jalapeno, slice in half and remove seeds. You can remove the membrane as well if you want to reduce heat. Rough chop and add to the food processor.
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Peel garlic and roughly chop, add to food processor.
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Clean cilantro and rough chop, put in small bowl for garnish.
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Add extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, salt, cumin and sugar (only if the tomatoes need a flavor boost) and squeeze of lemon to the food processor. Depending on the size of your food processor or blender you may need to do in cycles. Pulse until your desired consistency, see picture in post. I like to leave a little chunky.
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Pour vegetable mixture into tomato puree, then add vegetable juice.
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Ladle Gazpacho in bowls, pour a little extra virgin olive oil and sherry vinegar in each bowl. Serve shrimp and garnishes in small bowls for diners to add themselves. Garnishes include shrimp, diced cucumber, yellow pepper, red onion, lemon wedges, Greek yogurt and cilantro.
Recipe Notes
To make the Greek yogurt more of a sour cream consistency stir in about a tablespoon of milk, keep stirring until creamier.
For a picnic bring in a thermos or a container in a cooler.
Leave the shrimp out to make vegetarian or vegan.
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