Oaxacan Piedrazo Bar Snack or Salad - Rick Bayless

Ingredients

• 4 cups bread cubes (cut them into 1-inch cubes for the salad, 1x2-inch rectangles for the bar snack) from Oaxacan pan de agua or from bolillos or French baguette
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons chopped piloncillo (Mexican raw cone sugar) or brown sugar
• A generous teaspoon salt
• 2 bay leaves
• A few big sprigs of thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried)
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
• 1 large (4-ounce) carrot, peeled if you wish and thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 1 medium (6-ounce) onion (white onion is typical in Oaxaca, but red gives beautiful color), sliced ¼-inch thick
• About 3 ounces Oaxacan quesillo or other stringable cheese like mozzarella or string cheese, pulled into thin strings 2 or 3 inches long
• A little chile salt (preferably not one with dehydrated lime like Tajin) or Oaxacan sal de gusano
• A few splashes of Mexican hot sauce like Valentina or Tamazula
• 1 medium (6- to 7-ounce) cucumber, cut into ½-inch pieces
• 1 large (8-ounce) tomato, cored and cut into ½-inch pieces
• About 1/4 cup olive oil