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Panzanella II

A Tuscan bread salad with roasted red peppers, tomatoes, olives, arugula, and vinaigrette.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Tomato and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Panzanella II

Oven425°F
Time20 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the peppers

  1. Cut the red peppers into quarters and remove stem, seeds, and membranes.

  2. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place the pepper quarters on the foil, skin side up, and press each segment flat.

  3. Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes or until the skins are blackened and blistered.

  4. Remove the peppers from the oven and place them in a paper bag. Close the bag and let the peppers cool for 10 minutes.

  5. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, remove and discard the skins.

  6. Slice the peppers and set them aside.

Make the vinaigrette

  1. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the olive oil, white wine vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper.

  2. Quarter the tomatoes.

  3. Place a sieve over the bowl of vinaigrette. Using a spoon, scoop the seeds and pulp from the tomatoes into the sieve.

  4. Press the pulp with the back of the spoon to squeeze out tomato juice into the vinaigrette, then discard the seeds and pulp.

Assemble and serve

  1. Place the quartered tomatoes into a large bowl and add the sliced peppers.

  2. Pull apart the bread into bite-sized pieces and add them to the bowl.

  3. Add the olives, arugula, and vinaigrette to the bowl, then toss to coat.

  4. Serve.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

674Calories
16 gProtein
16 gFat
115 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 10 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Red Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Arugula1 cup (20g)5
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Olive1 large (4g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Basil5 leaves fresh (2.5g)1

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Tomato + olivetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  3. Tomato + garlictop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together14,076 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  4. Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  5. Plum + tomatotop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,480 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Red bell peppers
Their flesh softens and sweetens when roasted, and blistered skins are easier to peel off.
Ripe plum tomatoes
Provide juicy moisture and acidity; their juice is pressed into the vinaigrette to flavour the salad.
Stale italian or french bread
Stale bread is dry and firm, so it soaks up the vinaigrette and juices without turning mushy.
Olive oil
Adds fat and richness, carrying flavour through the vinaigrette and coating the bread.
White wine vinegar
Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the sweet peppers and tomatoes.
Brine cured black olives
Add salty, savoury depth that contrasts with the sweet roasted peppers.

The step that matters

Roasting the peppers until the skins blacken. Blistered skin loosens so it peels cleanly, and the charred surface adds smoky flavour. Under-roasting leaves skins stuck and bitter-tasting; over-roasting can dry the flesh.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, plum, tomato, olive, white wine, vinegar, garlic):

  1. Thymefits better
  2. Basilfits better
  3. Corianderfits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, plum, tomato, olive, white wine, vinegar, garlic. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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