This panzanella brings together the rustic charm of crusty bread, the vibrant freshness of juicy tomatoes and crisp cucumbers, and the aromatic taste of basil and red onion. It’s super easy to make, fresh, light, and perfect for summer BBQs and picnics!
Why This Recipe Works
We just can’t get enough of this colorful and flavorful panzanella – it’s the perfect summer salad! It feels like taking a trip to Italy and it’s just perfect as a side for BBQs, potlucks, and picnics. And it also makes a great lunch just by itself!
For those of you who haven’t heard of panzanella yet: It is an Italian salad consisting of stale bread, onions, and tomatoes. Often the recipe also calls for cucumber and basil. The dressing is made of olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. It’s originally from Tuscany, but it’s also popular in other parts of Italy.
I’ve made this recipe so many times and it’s always a real crowd-pleaser! It’s one of those recipes that will leave you craving for more.
I just love the combination of crusty bread and fresh tomatoes, bell pepper, and cucumbers. This salad is just bursting with sunny Mediterranean flavors and vibrant colors that will brighten up any table.
For the dressing I used a simple yet flavorful combination of olive oil, red wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard. Besides, I also added capers, which give this salad a tangy and aromatic element and take it on the next level.
Not only is this panzanella delicious, but it’s also a great way to use stale bread that might otherwise go to waste. If you don’t have any stale bread at home, you can also use fresh ciabatta bread or rustic bread and bake it in the oven for about 15 minutes.
This way the bread will be super crispy and it will perfectly soak up the dressing and the flavors of the other ingredients. The combination of bread, vegetables, and dressing makes it a well-balanced and nutritious option, providing you with a variety of vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Plus, you don’t need many ingredients for this easy Italian bread salad. In most cases, you should be able to find all of the ingredients in any regular grocery store.
You can serve it as delightful side dish, a light lunch, or make it for your next BBQ, potluck, or picnic. So gather your ingredients, give this salad a try, and impress your family and friends with this Mediterranean salad!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Bread – use ciabatta bread or rustic bread. Usually panzanella calls for stale bread. If you don’t have it, you can also bake it in the oven for 15 minutes like I did.
- Tomatoes – large tomatoes cut into cubes. You could also use cherry tomatoes (cut them into halves).
- Cucumber – an English cucumber.
- Bell Pepper – I used a red and yellow bell pepper.
- Onion – you need a red onion. It’s mild taste is perfect for salads.
- Capers – in a small jar. You can find them in the pickled food aisle.
- Olive Oil – use extra virgin olive oil for the best taste.
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Mustard – use Dijon mustard.
- Fresh Basil – use it generously.
- Salt & Black Pepper
How To Make This Recipe
1. Step: Either use stale bread or bake it in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Cut the ciabatta into cubes and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes.
2. Step: Roughly chop the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, and the red onion. Place everything in a large bowl. Rinse the capers and add them to the vegetables.
3. Step: Make the dressing. Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and stir well.
4. Step: Add the roasted ciabatta and the dressing and stir. Let it sit for about an hour before serving it. Tear the basil leaves and add them to the salad just before serving it.
Tips & Tricks
- For the best taste, make sure to let the salad sit for about an hour before serving it. You could also let it sit for up to a maximum of 2 hours. This way the dressing will soften the bread but it won’t get too soft.
- Concerning the bread, you have two options. You can either roast it in the oven like I did or you could leave it uncovered overnight to harden and stale.
- Also check out my watermelon cucumber salad with crispy ciabatta croutons that’s a spin-off of this panzanella.
Storing
I recommend eating the salad on the same day it’s made. Leftovers will keep up to 3 days in the fridge, but the bread will get soggy and the tomatoes will lose their flavor.
I would only store it half a day.
What’s the Best Bread for Panzanella?
I think ciabatta is the best bread for panzanella. However, you could also use artisan or rustic bread or even baguette.
Related Recipes
I Love To Hear From You!
I hope you like this panzanella salad as much as we do around here.
If you give it a try, I’d love to know what you think about it. Just leave me a comment and a star rating below. Your comments really make my day!
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Sina
Panzanella
Equipment
- 1 large bowl
- 1 chopping board
- 1 knife
- 1 spoon
- 1 baking tray
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 ciabbata or rustic bread (about 10 cups)
- 5 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cucumber, roughly chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 red onion, cut into strips
- 1/4 cup capers
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Usually panzanella calls for stale bread. If you don't have it, you can also bake it in the oven for 15 minutes like I did. Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Cut the ciabatta into cubes and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Roughly chop the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, and the red onion. Place everything in a large bowl. Rinse the capers and add them to the vegetables.
- Make the dressing. Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and stir well.
- Add the roasted ciabatta and the dressing and stir. Let it sit for about an hour before serving it. Tear the basil leaves and add them to the salad just before serving it.
Notes
-
- For the best taste, make sure to let the salad sit for about an hour before serving it. You could also let it sit for up to a maximum of 2 hours. This way the dressing will soften the bread but it won’t get too soft.
-
- Concerning the bread, you have two options. You can either roast it in the oven like I did or you could leave it uncovered overnight to harden and stale.
- I recommend eating the salad on the same day it’s made. Leftovers will keep up to 3 days in the fridge, but the bread will get soggy and the tomatoes will lose their flavor.
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