What Spanish dish consists of bread rubbed with tomato, olive oil, and salt?

Pan con tomate is the Spanish dish consisting of bread rubbed with tomato, olive oil, and salt. It is best known by its Catalan name, pa amb tomàquet, meaning “bread with tomato.”

The dish is a staple of Catalan cuisine and is also eaten in the Balearic Islands and parts of Valencia and Aragon. A typical preparation uses rustic country bread, often pa de pagès. A ripe tomato is rubbed directly over the surface so its pulp and juices soak into the crumb, then the bread is seasoned with salt and olive oil. Garlic may also be rubbed onto the bread, though it is optional rather than essential.

Pan con tomate can be served alone as a snack, breakfast, tapa, or accompaniment to a meal. It is frequently paired with cured ham, fuet, chorizo, cheese, anchovies, or grilled vegetables. The dish is often described as a Mediterranean staple, but its exact origin is debated. Food historian Nèstor Luján identified an 1884 written reference, while other accounts place its development in the 18th or 19th century, possibly as a way to soften stale bread.