recipe: pan con tomate

proof that simplicity is the key to brilliance.

Pan con tomate ("bread with tomato") is a Catalan classic, eaten as an appetizer, tapa, or even light meal. One of Spain's most famous culinary dishes, Pan con tomate, or pa amb tomàquet, consists of bread rubbed with tomato and seasoned with olive oil and salt. Only five simple ingredients create a flavor beyond the initial bite. Pan con tomate is an integral part of Catalan and Spanish cuisine and a quintessential Catalan dish.

I am not a big tomato person. I could go weeks without ever eating a tomato. I especially do not like them sliced in my salad or on a sandwich, but this combination transports me back to Spain, and I feel at home. Pan con tomate has become comfort food for me. This combination transforms plain old bread into a meal you’ll reach for again and again. It’s an effortless combination, but the flavor works so well together.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 ripe tomatoes

  – most recipes call for beefsteak tomatoes, but I use Roma all the time. Use whatever tomatoes you have on hand. 

• Bread

  – Use whatever you have! I’ve had this on toasted white sliced bread, ciabatta, baguette, sourdough, etc.

• 1 garlic clove, cut in half horizontally

• Good quality olive oil

  –It makes all the difference trust me!

• Salt

  –To season the tomato pulp, use any salt. To top the pan con tomate, I suggest sprinkling Maldon salt.

Slice your tomatoes in half horizontally. Place a box grater inside a bowl and grate the cut tomatoes, using your palm to move the tomatoes back and forth. The flesh should be grated off, and you can discard the skin. Season the tomato pulp with salt.

You can prep the tomato pulp ahead, but I only suggest a day earlier. The tomato loses its freshness.

Toast your bread. You can use a toaster, oven, or air fryer. You want your bread nice and crispy.

Rub your toasted bread with the cut garlic cloves. Spoon the tomato mixture on the bread and spread it. Drizzle olive oil. Top with Maldon salt. Serve immediately.

I hope you try pan con tomate even if youaren'’t a fan of tomatoes, like me! It is one of my all-time favorite dishes that just so happen to be NATURALLY VEGAN!

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