Oh the joys of summer! On the top of the list is fresh, ripe tomatoes, garden cucumbers, and basil that the more you cut, the more it grows. (Ever notice that basil is like a hydra? Cut one stem and two grow in its place.) And the tomatoes. Beefsteak tomatoes, early girls, heirlooms, plum tomatoes, not to mention the little ones like sun golds. Anyway, the heat has come, the garden has finally started to act like summer, and this classic Tuscan bread salad is a perfect thing to make with the bounty. According to Hank who made this salad for us the other day, panzanella at its core is really a way to use up crusty bread that has gotten hard and to celebrate perfect summer tomatoes. It is a cooling summertime salad that relies on the bread as the “filler” to soak up the juices of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers, as well as the olive oil you pour over everything.
Once a poor man’s dish, it has become rather trendy. Once you make it, you’ll see why. It’s a great way to show off wonderful, fresh, summer produce. Which is why you should only make it in the summer, and only use the best and freshest ingredients. With so few ingredients, all of them shine.
Panzanella Bread Salad Recipe
As you cut the tomatoes, remove some of the seeds and liquid. Your panzanella will be juicy enough. Leave the crusts on the bread chunks; they will stay chewier and give the panzanella more substance.
Ingredients
- 4 cups tomatoes, cut into large chunks
- 4 cups day old (somewhat dry and hard) crusty bread (Italian or French loaf), cut into chunks the same size as the tomatoes*
- 1 cucumber, skinned and seeded, cut into large chunks
- 1/2 red onion, chopped
- 1 bunch fresh basil, torn into little pieces
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup good olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
* If you don't have hard old bread sitting around, you can take fresh crusty bread, cut it into big cubes, lay the cubes out on a baking sheet, and put in a 300°F oven for 5-10 minutes, until the outer edges have dried out a bit (not toasted, just dried). If you use fresh bread without doing this, the bread may disintegrate into mush in the salad.
Method
Mix everything together and let marinate, covered, at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, up to 12 hours. Do not refrigerate or you will destroy the texture of the tomatoes.
Serve at room temperature.
Yield: Serves 6-8.
This is such a beautiful salad! Last year I made an autumn panzanella with sweet potato, pumpkin seeds, and sage. It is definitely time for a big summer version. You are so right about the basil. My bushes keep coming back with a vengeance!
We love Panzanella! I like to add a splash of red wine vinegar, which I think really ups the flavor of the whole dish. My wife doesn’t care for raw onions, so I usually substitute some green onion tops in its place. Great blog, keep it up!
Panzanella is one of my favorite summer salads. Even though it’s considered a peasant dish, it somehow feels so decadent and satisfying, particularly when using peak-of-the-season produce. I love to add sauteed wild mushrooms to my panzanella salads as well.
Panzanella is one of my favorite things in the world! I make mine just like this, except I always add either olives or capers.
Interestingly enough, I prefer this salad after several hours in the refrigerator. On a hot day, it’s delicious and refreshing.
Love this salad, and some of my favorite additions are chick peas, bell peppers, feta cheese, splash of red wine vinegar. Variations are boundless. The trick for me is to remember we’re only two and make a size that we can finish in one sitting!
Would this be alright with a fresh lemon squeeze or would that upset the balance of the dish?
I would try it and see if I liked it. ~Elise
I love this dish! I add edamame beans to mine, which I find is a great touch.
Panzanella is a summer staple in our house. The recipe I have uses a can of anchovy filets, too, which add a depth of flavor that is quite delicious. My little chocolate peppers are just starting to come in, so I threw in a couple of those, too, thinly sliced. Yum!
This looks wonderful! I often make a similar version with fresh mozzarella.
An excellent addition: Take the bread crumbs, drizzle them with olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix them up, bake at 400 for about 5-10 min til golden. You can actually do a bunch and keep in a container for a week so you’re not turning on the oven too much during the summer.
They add an excellent flavor to this wonderful salad!
I toast day old italian rolls, rub on raw garlic, and cut the bread crouton size and throw it into the salad and I too add red wine vinegar. Tomatoes make summer bearable.
I’m curious to see if this could work with gluten free bread slightly toasted in the oven with just a dab of olive oil… It looks delicious!
I love panzanella, and wait patiently (not really) for my tomatoes to ripen to make it. I usually add an acidic element, usually in the form of champagne vinegar. Yum!
Needs vinegar too. I use sherry wine vinegar tho balsamic might add a nice sweet element.
Actually, there should be enough acid in the tomatoes so that you don’t need vinegar. But if not, then of course, vinegar or lemon juice will do the trick. ~Elise
What a timely post! The salad was delicious and simple to cut down to feed two.
Once again another delish dish! Made it for dinner on a hot Pasadena night, just added a little red wine vinegar. Thanks for the perfect no-cook summer meal!
I made this over the weekend when Fuji Mama and family came for dinner. She recognized it right away from this site. It was delicious! I love the idea of salad + bread being one. It definitely simplifies things. I will be making this again and again.
Hi Elise, this does look delicious, and makes me very jealous that I don’t have a garden of my own with fresh tomatoes!
If you’re interested, I caught an episode of Good Eats a few days ago focused on tomatoes, and Alton Brown turned a BLT into a panzanella. (Rightly called “TBL” because of course the tomatoes are the most important.) I haven’t made it yet, but I’ve been having dreams about this idea! The recipe is here:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/tbl-panzanella-recipe/
if you want to give it a shot!
Hi Elise! Delicious and easy, as ALWAYS. Thanks!
Looks great. Just out of curiosity…in the picture it’s looks like there’s yellow tomatoes and..is it prosciutto?
That would be yellow tomatoes, and some very dark red tomatoes. ~Elise
Just made this. LOVED it! Added mozzerella and baby arugula. Yummy! Thanks for all the great ideas.
Elise… delicious, simple, and beautiful! It got rave reviews at our weekend picnic. I have made many things from your blog in the last few years, and I must say that this is going on a permanent favorites list! If I didn’t already love tomatoes, the photo alone would make me try this salad.