Panzanella
Tuscan bread salad of soaked country bread, ripe tomatoes, red onion and cucumber tossed in olive oil and red wine vinegar, rested at room temperature.
The bread is soaked and pressed dry while the onion and salted tomatoes are given time to mellow and release their juice. Everything is combined with the dressing and left to sit before the basil is folded in just before serving. The critical balance is the bread's moisture: juicy without turning mushy.
Ingredients
- 400 g stale country bread, 1-2 days old, ideally unsalted Tuscan bread
- 800 g tomatoes, very ripe, ideally beefsteak tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 1 cucumber
- 1 bunch fresh basil
- 1 dl extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 tbsp red wine vinegar
- salt
- black pepper, freshly ground
How to make it
- Cut the stale country bread into thick slices and place them in a bowl with plenty of cold water. Let the bread soak for 10 minutes, until the crumb is soft all the way through but the slices still hold together. ⏱ 10 min · passiveChef's tip Only genuinely stale bread survives this — day-old crumb has firmed up enough to rehydrate without disintegrating. Fresh bread turns to paste in the water. Pull a slice at 10 minutes and squeeze: it should feel like a wrung sponge, not porridge.
- Lift the slices out one at a time and press the water out between your hands until the bread no longer drips. Then tear the pressed bread into rough, irregular pieces into a large bowl, since torn edges soak up the dressing better than cut ones.Chef's tip Press firmly, in stages, rather than once hard — the goal is bread that feels damp but springs back, with no water running down your wrists. Leftover water dilutes the dressing and leaves the finished salad soupy.
- Cut the red onion into paper-thin half-moons and place them in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes, so the sharp bite draws out and the onion becomes crisp and mild enough to eat raw. Then drain and shake off the water. ⏱ 10 min · passive
- Cut the tomatoes into rough wedges and place them in a bowl with a generous pinch of salt. Let them sit for 10 minutes, until a small pool of tomato juice has collected at the bottom. Save the juice, since it makes up half of the dressing. ⏱ 10 min · passive
- Peel the cucumber in strips, halve it lengthwise and cut it into thick half-moons, so the pieces keep their crunch in the moist salad.Chef's tip The cucumber will keep releasing water into the bowl for the rest of the time; if it seems very juicy, scrape out the soft seedy core with a teaspoon, or a thin puddle will collect under the salad.
- Whisk the olive oil together with the red wine vinegar in a small bowl until the dressing is thick and cohesive. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, keeping in mind that the tomatoes are already salted.
- Toss the bread pieces together with the tomatoes and all their juice, the cucumber and the drained onion in the large bowl. Pour the dressing over and gently toss until every piece of bread is moist and glistening.Chef's tip Fold with a large spoon and your hand rather than stirring — the soaked bread is fragile and vigorous tossing shreds it into mush. Stop as soon as no dry pale patches remain.
- Cover the bowl and let the panzanella sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, until the bread is soft all the way through but the pieces still hold their shape. ⏱ 30 min · passiveChef's tip Room temperature, not the fridge: cold mutes tomato aroma and firms the olive oil into a dull film. Half an hour is the window — much longer and the cucumber weeps and the bread loses its shape.
- Tear the basil leaves off the stems and tear the largest ones with your fingers, since cut leaves turn black at the edges. Fold the leaves into the salad just before serving, and season one final time with salt and pepper.
- Divide the panzanella among wide, shallow bowls and scrape the last of the dressing from the bottom of the large bowl over the top. Serve at cool room temperature, while the bread is still juicy.
