This Tuscan-inspired panzanella salad recipe pairs crispy bread cubes with chickpeas, fresh summer veggies, and a zippy balsamic vinaigrette. It’s an easy salad that eats like a meal!

Overhead view of panzanella salad on white serving platter

Today’s panzanella salad recipe is a mashup of a traditional Italian panzanella salad and my 15-minute chickpea salad. It’s full of bold flavours and supremely satisfying thanks to the protein-packed chickpeas and crusty bread. I used my absolute favourite balsamic vinaigrette for this panzanella salad, which brings all the ingredients together. It’s tangy, tart, and perfect with the fresh tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers.

This is a bread salad that I can easily eat as a meal, though it’s also a great side salad to cheesy tomato gnocchi or kale and white bean soup.

What Is Panzanella?

Panzanella is a Tuscan summer salad traditionally made from cubed bread, onions, and tomatoes. The bread is often toasted first, so it doesn’t get soggy. Think of the croutons in a Caesar salad, but on a larger scale. If you enjoy this version with chickpeas, also try my Greek panzanella salad and strawberry panzanella salad.

Notes on Ingredients

Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.

Panzanella salad ingredients.
  • Crusty bread – Use gluten-free bread to make this a gluten-free chickpea panzanella salad.
  • Extra-virgin olive oil – The best choice in terms of flavour, but any cooking oil works.
  • Cherry tomatoes – Grape tomatoes or chopped Roma tomatoes can be substituted.
  • Red onion – Slice this thinly and evenly. A mandoline slicer makes it easy!
  • English cucumber– English cucumber is my favourite for salads because the seeds are smaller and the skin isn’t as thick.
  • Basil – Fresh basil leaves add herbaceous flavour to the mix.
  • Chickpeas – I use canned chickpeas for convenience, but you can cook them from dry if you prefer. If you’d like, you can roast the chickpeas first for more flavour.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • Extra-virgin olive oil – Use a high-quality olive oil if you have one on hand.
  • Balsamic vinegar – I recommend a sweet, syrupy balsamic vinegar to balance the tart citrus juice.
  • Lemon juice – Or lime juice, freshly squeezed.
  • Dijon mustard – Another kind, like yellow or stone-ground mustard, is also fine to use.
Overhead view of panzanella salad ingredients combined in a bowl.

How to Make This Panzanella Salad

Ready to get started? Here’s what you’ll need to do. Since the finished salad needs to “marinate” for a bit in the fridge, I love making my panzanella ahead. It can chill in the fridge while I make a grinder sandwich for lunch or Marry Me Pasta for dinner.

  1. Make the vinaigrette. Whisk all of the ingredients in a small bowl, or place them in a jar and shake it vigorously.
  2. Prepare. Preheat your oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with a silicone mat, foil, or parchment paper.
  3. Toast the bread. Place the bread on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes. Let the bread cool.
  4. Assemble the salad. Toss the toasted bread, the cherry tomatoes, red onions, cucumber, chickpeas, and basil in a large mixing bowl. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and toss again to combine.
  5. Let it sit. Cover the salad and let it sit for 30 minutes, or up to an hour, so all the ingredients are completely soaked, and the flavours have combined. 

Tips for the Best Bread Salad

  • Cut the bite from the onions. Not a fan of raw onion flavour? Slicing them very thin and letting them soak up the dressing will help cut their pungent flavour. Another option is to soak them in ice water, or just leave them out.
  • Let it rest. Trust me, the 30 minutes are so worth it. In fact, taste it right before, and then taste it after 30 minutes. I bet you’ll see a noticeable difference in flavour.
  • Don’t skip toasting the bread. You have to toast the bread. I like to use stale bread, then toast it until it’s completely dried out. This is how the bread stands up to the salad dressing and veggies without getting soggy.
Overhead view of chickpea panzanella salad on platter with bread in the background

What to Serve With Panzanella Salad

Although this panzanella salad works as a meal on its own, I serve it as a side dish, too. The flavours in the salad complement Italian-inspired dishes like roasted red pepper lentil pasta, cheesy cauliflower pizza casserole, and vegan garlic alfredo pasta.

How to Store

This salad will last in the fridge up to a day once it’s assembled. For meal prep, store the salad in one container in the fridge and the bread in a separate container at room temperature. Toss them together just before serving. 

More Summer Salad Recipes

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Overhead view of panzanella salad on white serving platter

Panzanella Salad

Servings: 4 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
This easy panzanella salad recipe pairs crusty bread with chickpeas, fresh veggies, and a zippy balsamic vinaigrette. A salad that eats like a meal!
5 (from 7 ratings)
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Ingredients

Panzanella Salad

  • 3 ½ cups crusty bread, chopped into 1 inch cubes
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
  • 1/4 large red onion, sliced
  • 1 cup cubed English cucumber
  • 2 tablespoons basil, julienned
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas, washed and drained, 425g

Mustard Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons lime or lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • pinch salt and ground black pepper

Instructions 

Mustard Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • Mix all the ingredients for the vinaigrette while the bread is toasting so that the mustard can emulsify.

Chickpea salad

  • Preheat oven to 450 ° F/ 230 ° C.
  • Add the bread cubes to a silicone mat on a baking sheet or a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper or foil.
  • Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
  • In a large mixing bowl, add the toasted bread, the cherry tomatoes, red onions, cucumber cubes, chickpeas and basil. Toss until combined.

Putting it all Together

  • Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and toss again to combine.
  • Cover the salad and let sit for 30 minutes to up to an hour so that all the ingredients are completely soaked in and the flavours combined. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • This recipe is vegan and gluten-free. If you’re not gluten-free, you can use a regular crusty bread.
  • The raw onions do become more subtle thanks to the lime and vinegar, but if you don’t like raw onions in your salads, you can leave them out.
  • Storage: This salad can last in the fridge up to a day as it is. You can store it in an air-tight tupperware container.  What I would suggest for a meal prep is to make the salad and the bread separately, and then plate appropriately when you are ready to eat.
Calories: 987kcal, Carbohydrates: 132g, Protein: 17g, Fat: 39g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 45mg, Sodium: 953mg, Potassium: 315mg, Fiber: 11g, Sugar: 22g, Vitamin A: 834IU, Vitamin C: 11mg, Calcium: 319mg, Iron: 3mg

Disclaimer: Although jessicainthekitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Jessicainthekitchen.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.

Cuisine: Italian
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Salads
Author: Jessica Hylton