Name: Grilled Bruschetta
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 12 thick (½-inch) slices crusty country bread; Olive oil (for brushing); Kosher salt (to taste); 2 garlic cloves (, peeled and halved (optional))

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Bruschetta on the Grill

Bruschetta is an amazing year-round appetizer, or snack, but in the summer you have the option of grilling your bread, which is a whole other ball game of bruschetta. The live fire (whether gas, coals, or wood) offers a lovely smokiness to the bread, not to mention that anything with grill marks on it immediately looks more appetizing and tastes better than anything WITHOUT grill marks on it.

Grilled Bruschetta piled on a white plate.

Bruschetta is a piece of grilled or toasted country bread, brushed with olive oil, and sprinkled with salt, and often generously piled with a robust topping. Sometimes the toasted bread is rubbed with a garlic clove before serving, either topped or plain.

The word refers to the toasted bread itself, though sometimes the word is used to describe a dish of toasted bread with toppings, which can be very varied.

Bruschetta with grill marks on a white plate.

Grilled Bruschetta: A bit of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt, and sliced bread becomes a whole other level of bruschetta love on the grill.
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How to Make Grilled Bruschetta

Heat the grill to medium. Slice the bread into 1/2-inch thick slices.

Brush the bread with the olive oil.

Slices of bread being brushed with olive oil.

Sprinkle with kosher salt.

Woman sprinkling salt onto slices of bread.

Grill the bread for about 2 minutes on each side, until it gets nice light brown grill marks.

Tongs grabbing a slice of bread on a grill.

Rub the toasted bread with the halved garlic cloves, if desired. Serve plain or top as desired (see below for suggestions).

How to Serve Grilled Bruschetta

You can serve these little toasts as is — honestly, before I even get to topping them, family members and friends usually wander into the kitchen and snap up a piece or two of toast, so it’s smart to make extra. If you choose to rub it with the garlic cloves, you’ll have even more flavorful little nibbles, and then you can consider toppings.

I find bruschetta a great way to use up leftovers, repurposing them into toppings. The swiss chard and leek mixture, below, originated as a side dish, but leftovers were just perfect served atop these olive oil slicked toasts. 1 cup of sauteed or grilled vegetables, for instance, may not be enough to serve as a side dish, but it’s the perfect amount for topping a dozen pieces of bruschetta.

Bruschetta Recipes:

Try these toppings on grilled bruschetta.

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