How to Make Pan con Tomate (Spanish Tomato Bread)

Quick Summary: The simplest tomato recipe: ripe tomatoes grated onto garlic-rubbed toast and drizzled with olive oil. A breakfast staple across Spain that requires only four ingredients but depends entirely on tomato quality. Includes Mexican-inspired variations with chile and lime. Prep: 10 min | Serves: 2

Jump to: RECIPE | What Is Pan con Tomate? | Ingredients | Best Tomatoes to Use | FAQ

While visiting our daughter in Andalusia Spain we discovered the ubiquitous “tomato bread” (pan con tomate). Everywhere we went it was served as breakfast.

All you need for this easy, flawless breakfast is a good tomato, some crusty bread, olive oil, and a clove of fresh garlic. Oh, and a box grater helps!

The simplicity is the point. With only four ingredients, each one matters. Mediocre tomatoes make mediocre toast. Great tomatoes, like the heirloom varieties I grow at HeathGlen Organic Farm, make all the difference.

Back home, I started experimenting with Mexican twists: a little chile, a squeeze of lime, some cotija cheese. The Spanish purists might object, but the flavors were fun and delicious to experiment with.

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What Is Pan con Tomate?

Pan con tomate (pahn kohn toh-MAH-tay), also called pa amb tomàquet in Catalan, is a Spanish breakfast dish of toasted bread rubbed with garlic and topped with fresh grated tomato and olive oil. It’s served throughout Spain but is especially associated with Catalonia and Andalusia.

The dish dates back to the late 19th century, when farmers discovered that rubbing tomato on stale bread softened it and added flavor. What started as a practical solution became a beloved tradition.

The key is the tomato. In Spain, specific varieties are grown just for this purpose: ripe, flavorful, slightly meaty tomatoes that grate easily and have enough juice to soak into the bread without making it soggy.

The Four Ingredients (and Why Each Matters)

The Tomatoes:

This is not the place for bland grocery store tomatoes. You need ripe, flavorful tomatoes with good acidity and sweetness. Heirloom varieties work beautifully. I like Costoluto, a meaty Italian heirloom, or Opalka, a paste-type tomato with few seeds.

Heirloom tomatoes have a huge range of flavor profiles. I’ve put together a description of tomato flavors based around color that can be helpful in choosing the best tomato for the best use.

Check out my recommendations specifically for tomato bread below.

Growing your own tomatoes of course is the ultimate in taste. No garden? Try growing them in a pot on your deck. There really is nothing like a home-grown tomato.

If you only have grocery store tomatoes, slice them thick, salt them, and let them sit for 15 minutes to draw out flavor. Or roast them briefly.

The Bread:

Bread is the second variable, but it is not quite as critical as good tomatoes. I have used a baguette (see photo at top of page), but I have also had great tomato bread with sourdough bread from Costco that I toasted.

Just make sure your bread is crusty and crisply toasted. This is not the place for soft white enriched breads.

If you like to grill, toss the bread on the grill and get it nice and crusty. All the more ridges for the garlic to adhere to.

The Olive Oil:

Next up is the olive oil. This is where you want to use the good extra virgin olive oil, not the refined olive oil used for cooking.

Refined olive oil (or light olive oil) is what you want to cook with because it has a high smoke point, but extra virgin is for fresh uses.

The Garlic:

The last ingredient is garlic. There is not as much variability in the garlic. Just get a head of garlic and break off a fresh clove to rub on the toast. No bottled garlic here OK?

So this summer, transport yourself to Spain with this tomato bread, and try this Andalusian Gazpacho also when you have those beautiful ripe heirloom tomatoes in hand.

How to Make Spanish Tomato Bread

• Cut tomatoes in half crosswise. Grate the cut side on a box grater (large holes) into a bowl. The skin will stay in your hand; discard it.
• Season the grated tomato with salt and let sit 10 to 15 minutes.
• Toast bread until crusty and golden. While bread is still warm, rub a peeled garlic clove across the surface. Drizzle generously with olive oil.
• Spoon grated tomato over the toast. Eat immediately.

Best Tomatoes for Pan con Tomate

Not all tomatoes work equally well. Look for:

Ideal characteristics:

• Ripe and fragrant (should smell like a tomato)
• Good balance of sweet and acid
• Meaty rather than juicy
• Soft enough to grate easily

Good varieties:

• Costoluto (Italian heirloom, meaty and ribbed)
• Opalka (paste tomato, meaty)
• Brandywine (heirloom, excellent flavor, but can be juicy)
• Cherokee Purple (heirloom, complex flavor)
• Any homegrown ripe tomato

Varieties to avoid:

• Unripe tomatoes (pale, hard)
• Juicy slicing tomatoes
• Cherry tomatoes (too small to grate)
• Anything that doesn’t smell like a tomato

The Spanish use a variety called tomate de colgar, bred specifically for this dish. If you grow tomatoes, it’s worth seeking out seeds.

Variations for Mexican Flavors

The Spanish version is perfect as-is, but I’ve been experimenting with Mexican-inspired additions that complement the tomato and garlic base.

• Chile and lime version: After adding the tomato, squeeze fresh lime juice over the top and sprinkle with chile powder (ancho, guajillo, or tajín). The acidity and heat brighten the dish.
• Cotija version: Crumble cotija cheese over the finished toast. The salty, tangy cheese adds another layer.
• Avocado version: Spread mashed avocado on the toast before adding tomato. More substantial, almost a full breakfast.
• Chipotle oil version: Infuse olive oil with chipotle powder and use that instead of plain oil. Adds smokiness.
• Salsa macha version: Drizzle salsa macha over the finished toast for heat and crunch.

These variations work well for breakfast toast also, or when you want something more assertive than the subtle Spanish original.

Is Tomato Bread Slow Carb?

While this is not a slow carb food choice, I never turn down classic fare in a particular culture while traveling.  

Tomatoes are quite healthy but they do have natural sugars in them, and bread, of course, is a carb no matter what kind.

Olive oil and garlic are considered healthy choices no matter what kind of diet you follow

FAQ

For a detailed guide and journal for growing tomatoes, check out my Tomato Workbook on Amazon for $11.99.