Panzanella (Italian Tomato and Bread Salad)
Juicy ripe tomatoes, cucumber, basil and toasted bread come together in this Tuscan-style salad with a tangy tomato-juice dressing.
By Cookin' Kitchen
- Total: 50 minutes
- Servings: 4 servings
Recipe
Panzanella (Italian Tomato and Bread Salad)
Juicy ripe tomatoes, cucumber, basil and toasted bread come together in this Tuscan-style salad with a tangy tomato-juice dressing.
Cookin' · https://cookin.club/recipes/panzanella-italian-tomato-and-bread-salad
- Prep
- 10 minutes
- Cook
- 15 minutes
- Rest
- 25 minutes
- Total
- 50 minutes
- Servings
- 4
Ingredients
For 4 servings
Salad
Dressing
Instructions
Toast the bread
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
Step 2: Toss the bread chunks with 1 tbsp olive oil in a bowl.
Step 3: Spread the bread on a tray and toast for about 15 minutes, until the outside is becoming golden and crunchy but the inside is still a little soft, like toast. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
Make the salad
Step 4: Cut each tomato into 8 wedges. Halve some of the wedges; irregular shapes work well for this rustic salad.
Step 5: Put the tomatoes in a colander set over a large bowl. Season with the salt, toss and set aside for 10 minutes to draw out the juices. Reserve the tomato juice in the bowl for the dressing.
Step 6: Cut the cucumber into irregular but evenly sized chunks about 2.5 cm/1 inch wide.
Step 7: Transfer the tomatoes from the colander to a large bowl. Add the cucumber and basil, then toss gently.
Step 8: Add the dressing ingredients to the bowl with the tomato juice and whisk well.
Step 9: Add the bread to the salad, pour over the dressing and toss lightly.
Step 10: Leave for 5 minutes so the juices soak into the bread, tossing once or twice. Toss once more just before serving.
Notes
For the bread, aim for about twice as much vegetables as bread by volume. Avoid baguettes, dinner rolls and very dense bread.
The dressing can also be made with cider, sherry or champagne vinegar, or white balsamic vinegar.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 431 kcal
- Fat
- 32 g
- Saturated fat
- 5 g
- Carbohydrates
- 32 g
- Sugar
- 6 g
- Fiber
- 3 g
- Protein
- 6 g
- Sodium
- 972 mg
Estimated values; they will vary with the exact ingredients and brands you use.
About this recipe
Juicy, ripe tomatoes are essential for this salad: their juices become part of the dressing. Toast the stale bread so it stays pleasantly textured after the salad is dressed.
Panzanella makes a filling lunch or light meal, or serve it as a side dish. Use a bread with an open crumb and some heft, such as ciabatta, pane di casa, open-crumbed sourdough or Turkish bread.
Peeling the cucumber is optional, though English cucumbers may have tougher skin. White wine vinegar is listed for the dressing, with red wine vinegar as an alternative.
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