Inspired by conversations on the Food52 Hotline, we're sharing tips and tricks that make navigating all of our kitchens easier and more fun. Today: Forgot to stale the bread? Not to worry—stay calm, follow these easy-peasy steps, and carry on.
So you think your days of emergency bread-staling are over, do you? The stuffing's behind you? There are bread puddings and breadcrumbs and croutons in your future yet. And amidst your adept holiday meal-planning, you might (just might) let staling the bread slip.
When that happens, don't scrap the bread pudding. (Never scrap the bread pudding.) Here is what to do.
If you remember with a day to go, slice your loaf.
The more of the bread's surface area you expose to air, the faster it will stale; slice it, and you're giving yourself a leg up on the whole process. (If you'll eventually be cubing your bread, be careful to cut it into slices with the same thickness you'd like your cubes to have.) Lay the slices on a cooling rack you'd normally use for cookies, let the air circulate, and watch your bread go gloriously brittle. Tomorrow it will be ready to turn into breadcrumbs or put into that pudding.
If you truly have no time, turn to your oven.
Giving your bread a quick bake in a 350ºF oven will starve it of its moisture—which is exactly what you're looking for. Cut your loaf into evenly sized cubes or slices (depending on what you're making), and toast them, dry, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Proceed with your recipe. (Please save us some.)
A Few Recipe Ideas for All That Stale Bread
This Tuscan bread soup takes just five simple ingredients (think: tomatoes, garlic, and stale bread) and magically turns them into a spectacular dish.
"For our first dinner in the new house, my mom made a staple of Mexican home cooking, albóndigas (meatballs in a tomato sauce)," writes Isabel Torrealba in her My Family Recipe.
French toast goes the savory route in this extra-crispy version with a healthy kick of salt and freshly ground pepper. Maple syrup gets swapped for ketchup, or if you're feeling like something spicy, Sriracha.
This "kitchen-sink" dish works for almost anything you've got lying around the fridge (from soon-to-be-wilty greens to leftover sausage), yet looks impressive on a dinner table.
We'll admit it: Our favorite part of French onion soup is the melty-crispy cheese on top. But those hunks of crisp, stale bread give the soup its classic, comforting heartiness.
How do you stale bread in a hurry? Tell us in the comments!
Photos by James Ransom
FAQs
To stale lots of bread slices, position oven racks close together, then place a baking sheet in between them and stand up the slices of bread between the rungs. Warm the oven to 300 degrees and keep a close eye on the slices until they dry and slightly toast. Then the bread is ready to be cut into cubes or used as is.
How to soften hard bread quickly? ›
Wrap the bread in a damp (not soaking) towel, place on a baking sheet, and pop it in the oven for 5-10 minutes. In the microwave: Wrap the bread in a damp (not soaking) towel, place it on a microwave-safe dish, and microwave on high for 10 seconds. Check and repeat if necessary.
How to make fresh bread like day old bread? ›
How to Revive Stale Bread
- Begin by heating the oven to 300 degrees F. ...
- Take your whole loaf or partial loaf and run it quickly under running water just to wet the outside. ...
- Place the loaf on a baking sheet and heat until it is dry and crusty on the outside — 6 to 10 minutes, depending on its size and wetness.
How to make bread soft again without an oven? ›
How can you soften stale bread quickly? To soften stale bread quickly, you can try one of these methods: Microwave: Wrap the bread in a damp paper towel and microwave it in short bursts (10-20 seconds at a time) until it's softened.
What makes bread go stale faster? ›
The reason a refrigerator is bad for bread: When bread is stored in a cold (but above freezing) environment, this recrystallization, and therefore staling, happens much faster than at warmer temperatures. Freezing, however, dramatically slows the process down.
What to do with rock hard bread? ›
If your bread is rock hard, go right to the last idea.
- Gazpacho. Use bread to add consistency in many soup recipes, like Gazpacho.
- French Toast. Who can resist waking up to a delicious breakfast of french toast and warm maple syrup.
- Bread Pudding. ...
- Bread and Chocolate. ...
- Croutons. ...
- Fresh Breadcrumbs. ...
- Say Goodbye.
How do you revive stale bread in the microwave? ›
All you need to do is place your bread inside a damp paper towel, and microwave it on a plate for 10 seconds. The water will revive the starch molecules in the bread's flour, the reaction between the two will occur again, and you'll have your soft bread back.
Is expired bread safe to eat if there is no mold? ›
If the date on your bread or snacks has expired, it does not mean they have not gone bad. In fact, once something goes stale it means that it has been depleted of moisture, which makes it less likely to grow mold.
What is the secret to softer bread? ›
One of the easiest ways our bakers follow to make bread soft and fluffy is by using 1-2 tablespoons of lubricant/fats such as vegetable oil to wet the ingredients. This will prevent the formation of excess gluten, as excess gluten makes bread chewy.
Does heating up stale bread make it softer? ›
To soften a stale loaf of bread, you need to heat it so that the starches will reabsorb the water.
Microwaves do soften bread, but the results aren't perfect. Within a few minutes, the bread usually turns rubbery and even tougher than before. This is the fastest method, but it's best to save it for an immediate snack. This happens because the microwave boils away some of the water.
What ingredient makes homemade bread last longer? ›
Hydrocolloids. Hydrocolloids are ingredients that work wonders to keep bread fresh and delicious for longer. The ones commonly used in bread are agar and carrageenan from seaweed, and cellulose and gum acacia from plants.
How can a fresh bread turn into a stale one? ›
Consider how the bread is stored.
Improper sealing, overly thin packaging or anything else that results in the loss of moisture to the environment can speed the rate of staling. On the other hand, a complete lack of ventilation can quickly turn a crisp crust soft and encourage mold growth.
Will leaving bread out overnight make it stale? ›
Just make sure the packaging is securely closed. If you leave it on the counter for more than a couple of days it's much more likely to be dry than stale, especially if you open the package a few times.
How to get stale bread for stuffing? ›
Start by cutting the bread of your choice into half-inch cubes. Spread the cubed bread on top of two cooling racks set in two half-sheet pans. Heat your oven to the lowest setting (typically 150°–200°F) and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until completely dry.
How do you store homemade bread so it doesn't get stale? ›
Bread boxes, if you have one, work great, but you can also use wax paper, a beeswax and linen bag, or even a dishcloth. A clean dish towel is one of Hartzheim's favorite options. "Plastic bags help keep the crumb (the interior of the loaf) soft but also make the crust soft.
How long does it take for bread to get stale? ›
4 Stages of Bread Freshness
| Age | Characteristics |
---|
Ultra-Fresh | 0 to 1 day old | Moist, elastic, springy, difficult to slice |
Fresh | 1 to 2 days old | Less moist, easy to slice |
Dry | 3 to 4 days old | Much less moist, very easy to slice |
Stale | 5+ days old | Hard, difficult to slice |
Jun 7, 2021