This panzanella salad is the perfect summer salad! It’s super easy to make, vibrant, fresh, and light. I’m sure you will love it as much as we do around here.
I just can’t get enough of this easy bread salad. It feels like taking a trip to Italy! It’s just perfect as a side for BBQs, potlucks, and picnics. And it also makes a great lunch just by itself!
What Is Panzanella?
Panzanella is an Italian salad consisting of soaked 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.
What You Need:
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 need:
- ciabatta bread or rustic bread
- tomatoes
- cucumber
- red and yellow bell pepper
- a red onion
- capers
- olive oil
- red wine vinegar
- Dijon mustard
- fresh basil
- salt
- black pepper
As always, you can find the full ingredients list and the recipe instructions in a separate printable recipe box at the end of this post.
How To Make This Panzanella Salad
STEP 1: 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.
STEP 2: 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.
STEP 3: Make the dressing. Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and stir well.
STEP 4: 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.
Recipe Notes:
- Don’t place the salad in the fridge before serving it because this causes the tomatoes to lose a bit of their flavor.
- Make sure to let the salad sit for about an hour before serving it. You could also let it sit for up to 3 hours.
- I recommend eating the salad on the same day it’s made. Leftovers will keep a few days in the fridge, but the bread will get too soggy and the tomatoes will lose their flavors.
- 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 used store-bought ciabatta bread, but if you want you could also make your own ciabatta.
More Delicious Salad Recipes:
- Southwestern Pasta Salad
- Vegan Potato Salad
- Vegan Chickpea Salad
- Mexican Salad
- 12 Amazing Vegan Salad Recipes
- Easy Pasta Salad with Tomatoes and Basil
- 14 Easy and Healthy Summer Salads
You might also want to check out my focaccia bread!
I LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU GUYS!
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
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
- Don't place the salad in the fridge before serving it because this causes the tomatoes to lose a bit of their flavor.
- Make sure to let the salad sit for about an hour before serving it. You could also let it sit for up to 3 hours.
- I recommend eating the salad on the same day it's made. Leftovers will keep a few days in the fridge, but the bread will get too soggy and the tomatoes will lose their flavors.
- 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 used store-bought ciabatta bread, but if you want you could also make your own ciabatta.
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