Everything Bagel Panzanella Salad

Bagel croutons for president.

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Some believe the best panzanella salad is made with rustic country bread, but the New Yorker in me has always preferred using bagels—so I created this everything bagel panzanella to show the world just how great that can be. Toasted bagel croutons are tossed in a zingy tomato juice vinaigrette with heirloom tomato, red onion, capers, and basil for a salad that you’ll want to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

It’s a bagel salad, so is breakfast really that weird of a thought?

As particular as you are about the bagels you eat for breakfast, I wouldn’t be too precious about the bagels you use for this panzanella. Any type will work, whether it’s bought from a grocery store or a popular chain, or your local bagel shop. Just make sure the bagel croutons are tossed in great olive oil and roasted in the oven until they’re golden and crispy on the outside, and you’ll have a winning salad.

Old-school recipes will recommend using stale bread for bread pudding, stuffing, or panzanella salad, but I’ve always preferred to simply toast fresh bread cubes. (Throat-clearing: here comes the science.) Stale bread actually becomes hard because of starch retrogradation (a process where the starch molecules realign themselves in hard, long chains), not because of moisture loss. So while it seems dried out, it still has pockets of hidden moisture that prevent it from absorbing whatever you’re about to soak it in. Toasting, on the other hand, ensures that the bread is actually dry so it can accept the vinaigrette . . . and brings the added benefit of extra browned flavor.

Once assembled, this salad is best eaten within an hour; the longer it sits, the more liquid the croutons will absorb. If you do have leftovers, they can be kept in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 1 day, but they’ll become progressively soggy.

Enjoy!

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Everything Bagel Panzanella Salad

(Serves 4-6)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

12 oz. everything bagels (2-3, depending on size), sliced in half and then cut into 1” cubes

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided, plus more (I used Diamond Crystal)

2 lb. heirloom tomatoes, cut into 1” pieces

1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ red onion, thinly sliced

¼ cup capers, drained

¼ cup fresh basil leaves, torn

Equipment: 2 large bowls, 1 small bowl, baking sheet, colander, flexible rubber spatula or spoon, whisk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.

2. In a large bowl, toss together everything bagels and ¼ cup olive oil. Spread onto a large rimmed baking sheet and bake until crisp and light golden, 8-12 minutes. Remove from oven and season lightly with salt. Let cool. Wipe out bowl.

3. Meanwhile, in a large colander set over the ow-clean bowl, toss together tomatoes and 1 ½ teaspoons salt. Let sit 5-10 minutes.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together garlic, red wine vinegar, mustard, and remaining ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Add two tablespoons of tomato juice from the bottom of the large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Whisking constantly, stream in remaining ¼ cup olive oil.

5. Remove the colander from the large bowl and discard remaining tomato juice (or save for another use). Add drained tomatoes to the now-empty bowl with red onion and capers. Drizzle dressing over and toss lightly to combine. Add the everything bagel croutons and basil and toss just until incorporated, then serve immediately.

Originally published July 30, 2023. Updated August 15, 2026.