Mango Gazpacho

What's better than beating the summer heat with a refreshing bowl of delicious soup?

Eating it secretly in the closet in the middle of the night?

Either way, this tangy take on a traditional cold soup is a really bright, cheery summer dish full of colour, and of course taste!

Is it really a gazpacho? Fundamentalists may argue, but it does have olive oil and garlic in it and you could toss in stale bread if you wanted. While normally expected, tomatoes are in no way mandatory. Call it what you will - this soup is rad.

Yep, rad.

Mango Gazpacho

makes: 6-8 servings
takes: 10-15 minutes

Equipment

Standard kitchen stuff, really. I used:

-a blender

-a knife

-a cutting board

-a veggie peeler

-measuring cups and spoons

Ingredients

-ripe mango - I used 3 smallish mangoes that gave me about 500 mL / 2 cups of chopped fruit

-500 mL / 2 cups orange juice

- 30 mL / 2 Tablespoons olive oil

-juice of 1 lemon (about 90 mL / 3 Tablespoons)

-small bunch of cilantro (coriander)

-small bunch of mint

-1-2 hot chili peppers

-1 clove of garlic

-1/2 a green bell pepper

-1/2 a red bell pepper

-2 small cucumbers

-salt to taste

In step 1, we can have lots of fun.

Anyone?

Here we make the basis of the soup.

All you have to do is put your wet ingredients into the blender and whiz them until smooth.

This includes the orange juice, olive oil, mango, and lemon juice.

BUT I'd recommend putting in only half the lemon juice and keeping the rest for the end. Your mangoes might have a sour element to them, so don't overdo it. Mine were really sweet so I ended up using all the lemon juice.

As for the olive oil, I used a high quality oil but not extra-virgin. I think the flavour might be overpowering, but if you love it, try it. But don't leave the oil out. As the only source of fat in this recipe, it's crucial to producing the perfect texture and mouthfeel.

Mmmmmango

If you've never worked with mango, you want to choose ripe fruits that are soft when you squeeze them, but not mushy. There is an amazing variety of mango madness out there. Some fruits are green when they're ripe while others turn orange, red, or yellow. If in doubt, ask for help.

A mango has a very large but thin oval-shaped pit inside. I recommend standing the mango up on a cutting board and slicing down just a bit to one side of the center. Feel for the pit and if you hit it, run the knife around it and cut to the bottom, then repeat on the other side. There will still be flesh on the pit so you can carefully cut it off, too. Then I just take a spoon and scoop out the flesh. Saves peeling.

Don't forget to slurp on the pit, or let a teething baby have a go.

The next step is just too easy.

Simply roughly chop the garlic, hot chili pepper(s), cilantro (coriander), and mint, then toss them in the blender. Give it a very quick pulse, like 5 seconds, just to get everything nicely mixed in. But don't overdo it - if you really blend this too much it will change the colour and make it a lot less appetizing.

Notes on the Herbs:

Cilantro: aka coriander. Use the whole stems and leaves, and keep the roots for making broth. Some people really hate this herb, finding that it tastes like soap or metal. If that's you, try substituting parsley instead.

Mint: There are lots of different types of mint out there. I used a very mild Thai mint that I don't know the English name of. If you have really pungent mint, try putting in just a little at first. You can taste it and add more, BUT be warned that the mint flavour will bloom through the soup in the fridge and get stronger. So, you know, take it easy.

Garlic: Surprisingly, the raw garlic barely comes through here. If you really want garlic breathe or you need to fend of vamps, go on and add more. I won't stop you.

Hot Chili Pepper(s): I used what is called in English a "Thai chili", but in Thai is a "prik chi fa" or "point at the sky chili. I used just one and it was very mild. I got called names I'd rather not repeat. If you are a brute, put in a handful. You could use a serrano or a jalapeno if Thai peppers are hard to find.

You've already finished the soup itself.

Taste it and add salt and lemon juice as desired.

Great! Now all that's left is to add the delightful crunchy bits that add wonderful colour and texture.

I used half a green and half a red bell pepper, de-seeded and bitter white pith removed, then diced.

I also put in cucumber, which I think is essential. I recommend peeling and scooping the seeds out with a spoon first before you dice them. You can leave the seeds in, but you don't get such a nice crisp crunch. I just scooped them out and ate 'em instead.

Now hey, I was thinking that maybe you don't like cucumber like my dad, or are allergic to bell peppers like my mom. What might also be nice? I think celery would also go well in there. The colour of beets might be wild, but they're not all that crunchy. Radishes, maybe?

Do experiment and let me know.

If you used cold ingredients right out of the fridge, you can make this soup in about 10 minutes and serve it immediately. It'll still be cold. But you can also make it in advance and keep it covered and chillin' in the fridge. It lasts about 2 days, but really it's tastiest served fresh.

Serving Suggestions

This soup is so bright and bold, you can serve it up in white dishes to highlight the colours or go for a mango gazpacho extravaganza with summer colours.

Traditional Andalusian gazpacho is most often served in a glass, but this soup in a bowl looks pretty hot as well.

It's up to you.

You can mix the crunchy noms right in, or you can use them to garnish the soup and let your lucky taste-testers stir them in for some DIY fun.

Have this soup on its own or as the first course to a nice hot summer's day BBQ dinner out on the back porch. It is yum!