Panzanella (bread and tomato salad)

This rustic summer salad of bread and tomatoes is a staple in Florence and has been popular since the Renaissance. It is a dish that makes much out of little, using inexpensive, seasonal ingredients.

Panzanella Credit: Kitti Gould

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

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When it was first created, panzanella didn't have tomatoes in it and was a simpler dish of bread and onions – tomatoes made their way into the Italian diet in the sixteenth century after the discovery of the Americas. The luxury of fresh tomatoes wasn't a feature of this recipe until after the Second World War.

Ingredients

• 250-300 g stale country style bread
• ½ red onion, thinly sliced
• 60 ml (¼ cup) red wine vinegar
• 3 tomatoes
• 2 short cucumbers
• 1 large handful rocket, rinsed and dried
• salt and black pepper, to taste
• 60 ml (¼ cup) extra virgin olive oil
• 20 basil leaves, torn to serve

Instructions

1. Remove the crusts from the bread and cut into chunks. Place in a sieve and pass under running water briefly to moisten. Squeeze out any excess liquid, if any, then let sit in a sieve over bowl to soften for 10-15 minutes or until springy. Crumble the bread into a large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, place the red onion slices in a bowl, sprinkle with half the red wine vinegar and cover with cold water to take the edge off. Set aside while you put together the rest of the salad.
3. Quarter the tomatoes and remove the seeds. Chop into 2 cm pieces. Peel the cucumbers, slice lengthways and spoon out the seeds with a teaspoon. Chop into pieces.
4. Drain the onions and place in the bowl with the bread. Add the tomatoes, cucumber and rocket. Season with salt and pepper, add the olive oil and the remaining red wine vinegar and toss until well combined. Add the basil leaves just before serving.

Notes

• It is best prepared an hour before serving to give time for the flavours to combine but it does not keep well for more than a day as the vegetables tend to lose their crunch in the vinegar.

Photography by Kitti Gould.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Stream free On Demand

Ingredient Vego

Watch The Full Episode Here

G

Watch The Full Episode Here

G

When it was first created, panzanella didn't have tomatoes in it and was a simpler dish of bread and onions – tomatoes made their way into the Italian diet in the sixteenth century after the discovery of the Americas. The luxury of fresh tomatoes wasn't a feature of this recipe until after the Second World War.