Panzanella Toscana

Ingredients

• 400 g pane sciocco (Tuscan unsalted bread), at least 2 days old and fully stale
• 600 g ripe tomatoes, ripe to the point of bursting, roughly chopped
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and sliced
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced raw
• 1 handful fresh basil leaves, torn
• 60 ml Tuscan extra-virgin olive oil
• 20 ml red wine vinegar, adjust after tasting tomatoes
• 1 tsp fine salt, to season; adjust after resting

Method

1. 1
   Submerge the stale bread in a basin of cold water. Leave for 3–5 minutes until fully saturated throughout. Lift the bread and squeeze it very firmly in both hands — repeatedly, in sections — until it is almost dry and dense, not dripping. The bread should feel compact, not sodden. Inadequate squeezing at this stage waterlogs the finished salad.
2. 2
   Tear the squeezed bread by hand into rough, irregular chunks approximately 3–4 cm across. Transfer to a large wide bowl.
3. 3
   Add the chopped tomatoes with all their juice and seeds, the cucumber slices, and the raw red onion. Taste one tomato: if the acidity is pronounced, hold back the vinegar until after dressing. Add the torn basil leaves.
4. 4
   Pour over the olive oil and red wine vinegar. Season with salt. Toss thoroughly so that the bread pieces are coated in oil and tomato juice and the vegetables are evenly distributed. The mixture should smell of ripe tomato, basil, and sharp vinegar in balance.
5. 5
   Leave at room temperature for 20–30 minutes. Do not refrigerate. At the end of the rest, the bread will have absorbed the tomato juices and dressing; the components will have unified. Taste for salt and vinegar. Serve immediately at room temperature — the surface of the salad should appear glossy and the bread chunks dense and well-coloured with tomato.