National Gazpacho Day: A Journey Through History and Connected Culinary Cultures…
Gazpacho’s history is deeper and way different than many might realize. First some way back historical context: It originated in Andalusia, the southern region of Spain, during the Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) when the Iberian Peninsula was under Moorish rule (for 781 years — from 711 to 1492). A substantive and transformative time for the region’s culture and cuisine. The Moors are described as being: Arabic, Muslim, and African (yes, including Black Africans from the subsaharan region) who introduced a range of innovation to Europe including but not limited to on the food and drink fronts: agricultural innovations, spices, and culinary techniques that left an indelible mark on the Iberian kitchen.
I had no idea (and most Americans or people anywhere still have no clues) that Africans of all hues had a multi century highly influential presence in Europe pre-transatlantic slave trade. This intel got only my radar many moons (ok DECADES) ago during an undergraduate study abroad program at the Universidad de Salamanca, in Spain. I remember strolling through a Spanish national portrait gallery with my jaw-dropped looking at portraits of Black African nobles dressed in regal attire—an image that completely shifted my understanding of Europe’s history and the diversity of the Moorish interactions with and influences on that continent. …
Back to One of The World’s Most Famous Cold Soups:
The original gazpacho bore little resemblance to the chilled or room-temp tomato-based version we know today (& featured in my 2013 photo below of a DELICIOUS gazpacho I made once upon a time…). In the Middle Ages, tomatoes weren’t even part of the picture in Spain yet. Tomatoes are native to the Americas and didn’t arrive in Europe until well after Spain’s conquest of Mexico in 1521. Early gazpacho was a simple, resourceful dish made with stale bread, olive oil, vinegar, water, and garlic, all pounded together in a mortar and pestle. The name “gazpacho” is from an Arabic word for “soaked bread,” in fact…
Fast forward to today, and gazpacho is a vibrant, zesty concoction made primarily from New World ingredients: tomatoes, bell peppers (each with Mezo American origin) and cucumbers (from Africa). It’s fascinating to consider how much of the modern version of gazpacho owes its existence to the “Columbian Exchange”—a global reshuffling of foods, plants, and culinary cultures. …
That’s all on this saucy soup for now — Let’s raise a spoon to this soup’s rich history and the many cultures that have contributed to its story!
an 11 year old iPhoto of a DELICIOUS gazpacho I made back in Sept 2013…
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