Healthy Eating · Recipes · Vegetarian
BySam
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Trying to choose a name for this salad I did some online research in an attempt to discover what a ‘classic’ Panzanella salad consists of. Some includedmozzarella, some not. Some had cucumber and some had olives.Idon’thave complete clarity ontheissue, but with all things in cooking, just trust your instincts and make what you like.
My version is a chopped-up Caprese salad mixed with golden chunks of fried bread, finely sliced red onions, and it’s utterly delicious.
This sort of salad is my ultimate kind of lunch. I could probably eat it every day and never get bored. The flavours are bold and marry so perfectly with each other. It’s summer on a plate and party in your mouth.
1. I always ripen my tomatoes out ofthefridge. I sometimes put them in the sun or a sunny spot in my kitchen and I don’t mind one bit if they start to wrinkle. This tells me that they are at their peak in terms of ripening, and it is only at this point that I may put them in my fridge to stop this process and preservethema little longer. The result is a very juicy and sweeter tomato that is perfect for this salad.
2. I love to use a good artisan loaf of bread. My preference would besourdough or in this case sourdough rye. I want the bread for this salad to have some bite and texture to it. A pre-sliced and processed loaf would be completely out of the question. I like to cut the bread rind off and only use the inner part.
3. The dressing is so simple and only consists of two ingredients, so I choose a really good quality red wine vinegar and the best extra virgin olive oil I can find in my cupboard.
3. I lovethecrunchy taste of natural sea salt flakes and this is a crucial element of the dish. Don’t be shy about it.
4. As formozzarella, do I need to even mention that a proper fior di latte is the only way forward here. Soft and silky, it balances outthesharpness of the tomatoes and onions.
5. Garlic. I do love it but thereare times when I simplydon’tfeel like it’s the intense presence or having garlic breath. I think 1/4 or 1/2 a clove would be wonderful in this salad, but on thisoccasion, I left it out.
I don’t have accurate measurements for this salad, just make however much you want.
You might also like:
Greek Panzanella salad
Panzanella salad (a classic)
Caprese salad in phyllo baskets
Tomato salad with fried halloumi
Recipe – serves 2
Panzanella caprese salad
A delicious Caprese Panzanella salad recipe with tomatoes, red wine and basil.
Print Recipe
Prep Time:15 minutes mins
Cook Time:5 minutes mins
Ingredients
- About 2 cups of sliced ripe cherry or rosa tomatoes or whatever you have around
- Half a red onion veryfinelysliced
- A small handful of basil shredded or finely sliced into ribbons
- About 2 cups of cubedsourdoughbread edges and rind cut off- stale is best
- Olive oil
- About 1 Tbsp of butter
- 1 x 150g fior di lattemozzarellaball or any fresh mozzarella
- Red wine vinegar and olive oil forthedressing
- 1/2 crushed garlic clove optional
- Sea salt flakes
Instructions
First up, slice the tomatoes and put them in your bowl with the finely sliced onions, a sprinkle of salt, and toss them around a bit. You want to release some of the juice which will then interact with the red onion. This delicious liquid forms part ofthedressing that gets soaked inthebread.
Cut thebread into cubes and heat a nonstick frying pan. Add ageneroussplash of olive oil and when hot, fry the bread turning it over and tossing them so that you fry as many ofthesides as possible. Once it is looking quite done, add the butter aroundtheedges of the pan to evenlydistributeit and then tossthebreadaround. This just gives them more flavour and turns them into moredeliciouscrunchy golden croutons. Allow to cool slightly, or add them warm. (you could also roast the croutons in the oven see the link in the post above)
Whenyouare ready to eat, add the bread to the tomato and onion mix, and toss this with the basil, red wine vinegar, oliveoil, more salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Mix, taste, and adjust until it's perfect and just the way you like it. Serve on top of slices ofmozzarella(I find if you toss it through the salad too much it tends to mess it up and make it quite milky), or places a few strips in and around the salad.
Notes
Make the croutons by frying the buttered bread in olive oil in a pan or toss them in olive oil and roasting them in an oven.
Make sure you assemble the salad just before serving so as to retain some of the crunch.
Servings: 2
Author: Sam Linsell
