Classic Panzanella Salad (Tuscan-Style Tomato and Bread Salad) Recipe

Name: Classic Panzanella Salad (Tuscan-Style Tomato and Bread Salad) Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 300gram Tuscan Bread (Slices); 2 Cucumber; 3 Tomato; 0.5 Onion; 12 Basil (Leaves); as needed Extra-virgin olive oil; as needed Salt; 50milliliter White Wine vinegar; 200milliliter Water

This ingenious summer salad is another way that Italians historically use up leftover crusty bread (we waste nothing, folks). A terrific staple to make during the hot summer months, there's no cooking here, just chopping and eating.
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Nina:

I wish I could give this even more stars - it is the BEST way to use up stale bread in the summer and if I could, I swear I'd eat it every day!

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What can I make with old bread for dinner?

As bread is one of the building blocks of the Italian diet, it stands to reason that there will be stale bread from time to time. Tuscans know there's no better way to get that stale bread out of your cupboards and onto your plates with clever, quick recipes incorporating leftovers, and created to help you clear out some of your pantry.

What is panzanella made of?

While each region has its own variations on what a Panzanella bread salad should include, we know in Tuscany that the cornerstone ingredients are luscious tomatoes, crispy cucumbers, fragrant fresh basil, sweet marinated red onions, spicy extra-virgin olive oil, and of course, stale crusty bread. They come together in a few short steps, and if you're a fan of working ahead, just create the salad and let it sit for several hours before eating - it's even better this way.

What wine goes with Panzanella?

The tomato lends acidity and an umami component. A good savory white like a Frascati or an Orvieto selection, with its decidedly chalky nature opens up a balsamic feature as it accompanies the onion.

Ingredients

for 4 servings

Panzanella ingredients

Tuscan Bread (Slices) 300 grams
Cucumber 2
Tomato 3 (Ripe tomatoes)
Onion 0.5
Basil (Leaves) 12
Extra-virgin olive oil as needed
Salt as needed
White Wine vinegar 50 ml2
Water 200 ml2

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Filippo Bartolotta

Sasyr - Tuscan IGT Wine - Rocca delle Macìe

0.75l

A highly drinkable Tuscan IGT wine, fruity and polished on the palate. Versatile and easy to match.

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About Rocca delle Macìe Wine Estate

Preparation

for 4 servings

Step

Of 3

Prepare the salad

Peel medium red onion, and cut into thin strips (julienne-style). Place into medium bowl.
Peel and thickly cube cucumbers, and add to bowl with red onion.
Wash tomatoes well, and dry. Coarsely chop each tomato into approximately 8 pieces per tomato. Add chopped tomatoes to bowl with cucumbers and red onion.
Using your hands, gently shred basil leaves. Once shredded, add basil to medium bowl with tomatoes, cucumbers and red onion.
In large mixing bowl, blend water and vinegar. Immerse stale bread for several seconds. Remove from water when slightly softened, and squeeze out excess water.

Step

Of 3

Add to bowl with vegetables. Blend ingredients well

A note about the bread to use in this recipe: we recommend using a stale, rustic-style or country-style bread.
A note about onions: if you have folks with slightly sensitive stomachs, try slicing red onion first, immerging the slices in a small bowl of water and cooling in the fridge for 1 hour prior to use.

This little trick can help make the raw onions more digestible.

Step

Of 3

Finish the dish and serve

Season your bread salad with salt to taste and generous amount of high-quality extra-virgin olive oil.
Serve cold with an additional sprig of basil to garnish.