Today’s recipe is pretty outrageous y’all. Fried Caper Panzanella. It’s my spin on the classic Panzanella but with some special Mississippi Vegan magic. The most important takeaway from this recipe (aside from the fact you’ll want to make it again and again) is the fried capers. Oh my goodness, the fried capers. If you’ve never had them, you are very welcome indeed. What happens to be green, unopened flower buds, capers pack a big punch of flavor. They are bright and lemony with some olive notes. They are salty and briny. When fried- they become crispy and even more delightful than they already are!
DRESSING OVERVIEW FOR THE FRIED CAPER PANZANELLA
For the dressing, we’re sizzling up some vegan butter with fresh oregano, fresh thyme, crushed red pepper flakes, freshly cracked black pepper, and lots of garlic and shallots. Infuse the butter with all of this gorgeous flavor. Which adds a nice richness to the tomatoes. Zippy red wine vinegar takes it over the top by offering a big punch of acidity.
TOASTING THE BREAD
Now, in the bread department, I demand that you use fluffy focaccia bread, like my Sourdough Focaccia, that’s sliced thin. Traditionally, this recipe contains stale bread that’s cubed. And that’s cool! But we’re not doing that this go-round booger. I want the bread to be chewy while also being crispy and golden brown. The other goal is to create the same shape as the sliced tomatoes. (When taking a bite, you’ll understand why I’m pushing for this!) So focaccia bread sliced thin it is. We’ll pan-fry it in the leftover olive oil that we fried the capers in. When ready to serve, a glorious showering of crispy fried capers is the ultimate chef’s kiss. There you have it! My Fried Caper Panzanella.
RECIPE TIPS & TRICKS
This is the kind of salad that comes together very quickly and needs to be enjoyed immediately, as the bread and the capers can get soggy. Additionally, if you are wanting to make this in advance, simply prep all of the ingredients and arrange them beautifully on the counter. When you are ready to make it, it comes together in a flash. Wait until just before taking your first bite to add the capers as you want them crispy- trust!
For the focaccia, try to find a nice beautiful loaf. If you can find a sourdough one, even better. To make things easier for slicing, wrap the bread in a kitchen towel and refrigerate it for a few hours. This will help you to easily cut thin pieces.
When cutting the tomatoes and bread, try making them about the same size. This doesn’t have to be absolutely perfect- so please relax. Just think about piercing a fork into a piece of bread AND tomato at the same time and taking a bite easily. That’s what you’re aiming for.
For added texture, I like to use this flaky salt.
I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS FRIED CAPER PANZANELLA!
Thank you for joining me here today! I hope that you love this recipe as much as I do. If you do try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. It greatly helps the success of my site and makes me oh so happy to read. Happy cooking, y’all.
–Timothy
3 tablespoons olive oil In a large skillet, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Once hot, throw in the capers and cook for 6-8 minutes, stirring every so often, until crispy. Taste one to make sure they are crispy and then remove from the skillet. Set them aside to garnish at the very end. Next, place sliced bread in the same skillet with leftover oil and pan-fry until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side. Drizzle in a little bit more oil, if needed. You want the slices to get toasty brown but still remain somewhat chewy on the inside. Once done, add the bread to a beautiful large salad bowl and set aside. For the dressing, in a separate small pan, add the butter and bring to medium-high heat. Throw in the shallots, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, oregano leaves, thyme leaves, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Bring to a sizzle and cook for a few minutes until the shallots and garlic are tender and the oregano leaves are crisped and curled. Remove from heat and set aside. Time to assemble! Add the sliced tomatoes to the large salad bowl with bread and gently toss. Add a few splashes of red wine vinegar (about 1 tablespoon). Using a spoon, spread the dressing over the bread and tomatoes and then pour every last drop out. Gently toss again. Right before serving, sprinkle the fried capers over the top and a bit of flaky salt, to taste. Eat immediately. 
Ingredients
½ cup capers, drained and patted dry
7 oz sourdough focaccia bread, thinly sliced into 2-inch pieces, ½” thick
3 heaping tablespoons vegan butter
1 large shallot, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (less if you don’t like spicy!)
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar)
Freshly cracked black pepper + salt, to taste
2 pounds heirloom tomatoes, sliced into 2-inch pieces, ½” thickInstructions
47 comments
OH MY GOSH, this looks amazing. I will be making this after my next trip to the market. It’s the one week of the year when we have good tomatoes here, ha!
I hope that you love it, Lisa!
Omg this was so delicious, I ate it in like 5 mins. Literally scooped up every last bit.
Oh gosh, this makes me so happy!! Truly, this is the best thing to read about a recipe. Thank you!!
Right up there with the best thing we’ve ever eaten! Thanks for another great recipe
Thank you Carol! I am so happy you liked it! I was very pleased with the final results. Happy cooking!
I just made this for myself for breakfast. Holy moly, beyond delicious! Added a few sundried tomatoes due to being short on heirlooms. You make good groceries, thank you for sharing this!
Yayyy! Love this. Thank you!
Made it last night. This was DELICIOUS! So many great flavors coming together. It’s so hard to keep the bread from getting soggy so wait until ready to serve to put it all together. I have leftovers and hate to waste so planning to put it in a casserole dish tonight and bake it like and treat it like a stuffing.
Oh that’s a great idea to make a stuffing with the leftovers!!!
I just made this salad and I am OBSESSED!! Your version is THE BOMB!
I had forgotten about it until I was looking through you recipes and watched the video.
When I was living in NYC we would make this salad a lot at the end of summer and pair it with a white wine. Just the best.
This recipe is AMAZING and I will definitely be making it until the last heirloom tomatoes are available!
Thank you, Sherry! I am so thrilled you liked it. Thank you for showing me some love here and on the gram. I appreciate it. Happy cooking!
I just made this and it was delicious! I’m typically not a fan of panzanella salad but the fried focaccia and heirloom tomatoes piqued my interest. Honestly, an incredible salad. All of the flavors were perfect. Definitely making again with the rest of my heirlooms!
Thank you Susan! This made me very happy to read.
This was amazing!! I made so many substitutions and I can’t even imagine how great it would be made correctly…Lol! Used ciabatta in a pinch, dried herbs instead of fresh and totally forgot the shallot. It was amazing and I’m going to go scarf the rest of this down right now!
That’s lovely to hear! I am so glad it worked out for you. Thanks for the comment!
This was absolutely fabulous!!!!!!! The fried capers were the best part! Cannot wait to make this again! Thank you!!!!
Fantastic! Love to hear this. Thank you!
This is one of my favorite recipes! I actually panicked because I didn’t save it from the first time I made it! This is a must-have if you love heirloom tomatoes. We’re having it again tonight!
Hi Ginny! Thank you so much for letting me know- this makes me very happy!! Happy cooking!
A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! This has become a go-to for us. Words do not do this justice. Make it. Just make it.
Just made a variation of this today. So happy you liked it! Happy cooking, Sharon.
A++ It’s one of my top favorite recipes here on the MVblog. First, I will say that I am a tomato snob. I refuse to buy fresh tomatoes from the grocery store. I get my tomatoes home grown from my own yard, from my friends, neighbors, or local farmer’s markets. So I recommend knowing your tomatoes. 😉 But oh lordy, this recipe. It’s too good. I made it at least a dozen times last year and used focaccia from Trader Joes. But this summer I will be attempting the MV focaccia recipe and I’m sure it will be even better. The combo of the crispy fried capers, shallots, garlic, fresh herbs and juicy sweet tomatoes is delicious. I am obsessed and will make it every chance I get..
Samantha! Thank you so very much for this thoughtful review! I am so happy to hear you like this recipe. I hear you on getting the most local and fresh tomatoes possible. They are really not comparable to store-bought. Happy cooking and have a fabulous weekend!
Oh. My. God!!!!
This is the best salad I’ve ever made or eaten! The fried capers are a revelation! I am obsessed with everything about it! Thank you for giving us the “salad of the summer”!!!
Oh Dawn, this made my evening! Thank you for letting me know. So happy you like it!
what a wonderful set of ingredients, love this and most especially the capers, really love them and they’re too often forgotten, including by me, so love that they are part of this salad, thank you!
Thank you! Yes, they definitely steal the show here! Thanks for the sweet comment. Happy cooking!
This version of panzanella is fantastic. It comes together so quickly, is beautiful on the table, and is really delicious. I’ve made it several times now, and its only caution is that it wants the very best tomatoes. Farmers Market, here I come again! I’ve also started buying capers in BIG jars! Thanks, MississippiVegan!
Yayyy, I am so happy to hear this!! Totally agree on the tomatoes- they should be the absolute best! Thank you for being here.
This was amazing! Perfect way to use our garden tomatoes!
Hi Kayleigh! So, so happy to hear this. Thank you for letting me know!
I actually like to try it. (Cause I’m not vegan) But I was searching for something vegan and like that stuff. And every dish I saw was not what I wanted. When I saw your recipes I changed my minddddd. I will definitely try it!!!
So, so good! I loved this salad.
Thank you, Krista!! This makes me smile!
I’m not a huge tomato lover so I’ve only ever eaten a panzanella salad a few times in my life. But there was something about this recipe that had me dying to try it. So glad I did bc it turned out fabulous and now I have a stellar dish to bring for all my late summer get togethers!
Hi Laura, thank you so much for the sweet comment. I am so, so happy to hear this!! When someone describes one of my recipes as fabulous, it’s a good day. Happy cooking!
Oh my goodness, I can’t tell you how much I love this! It’s heavenly! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Yesss, so happy to hear this! I was just thinking about this recipe the other day. So glad you like it!! Happy holidays, Kim.
delicious! never had a recipe from Mississippi Vegan that wasn’t 11/10 stars. my fav recipe developer!!
Aww, Jaimee- this makes me so happy to read! I am very happy to share my recipes with readers like you. Thank you for being here. Happy cooking!
Absolutely phenomenal, especially with summer tomatoes. I used dry herbs as I didn’t have fresh otherwise followed recipe to the letter.
Hi Linda! Can’t tell you how happy it makes me to read comments like this. Thank you for letting me know!
YUM. I made this for one. Very easy and delicious.
Hi Jen! Thank you so much for this. Very happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Delicious! I will make it again!
Love to hear it! Thank you!