Vegan Panzanella Salad with Bread & Tomatoes
This easy vegan panzanella salad is a delicious way to turn leftover bread and ripe tomatoes into a simple Italian salad the way Italian nonnas do. This traditional Tuscan salad is a great example of how simple ingredients can be really delicious.
Servings: 4
Calories: 508kcal
Ingredients
- 600 g loaf crusty bread (stale and cut into chunks - see notes)
- 1 red onion (peeled, halved and thinly sliced)
- 2 cucumbers (cut in half lenghtways, wet seeds scooped out with a teaspoon and cut in slices or dice)
- 5 large ripe tomatoes (diced and you can add up to 7 tomatoes)
- 1 handful fresh basil leaves (torn)
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar (or to taste)
- 1 pinch salt and black pepper (be generous)
Instructions
- Place chunks of stale bread in a bowl and briefly soak in water, just long enough to soften. Immediately squeeze out the excess water with your hands and transfer to a large serving bowl. Don’t leave it in the bowl or it will go mushy, If you are using salted bread, don’t soak it, but splash it with water, then leave it for a minute.
- Add the sliced onion, cucumber and diced tomatoes and their juice to the bowl with the bread.
- Add the torn basil leaves, season, then drizzle over the olive oil.
- Splash over the white wine vinegar. As Milena says, “Don’t be shy with it—in the heat, one’s palate needs a pick-me-up.”
- Use your hands to mix everything together but be gentle—you want to combine all the flavours whilst keeping the ingredients recognizable.
- Let the panzanella rest for at 20-30 minutes before serving it to allow the flavours to develop.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- To make the onions milder in flavour, use one of these 3 methods: soak the sliced onions in red wine vinegar for 10 minutes, soak them in water for 15 minutes or soak them in plant milk for 10 minutes, then drain and pat dry before adding them to the salad.
- You can use a stale rustic Italian loaf, bloomer's bread, or ciabatta. If your bread is fresh, lightly toast it first.
- This salad is best served fresh, you can keep letovers in the fridge, but the bread will be very soft.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 508kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Sodium: 257mg | Potassium: 615mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 1416IU | Vitamin C: 28mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 5mg
