Homemade Croutons are very easy to make. They add texture and flavour to soups and salads. Use fresh or stale bread, cut them into cubes and season to taste. Add some grated Cheese and you have a delicious snack or side dish.
This is one of the easiest recipes to do, if you want to know how to make croutons from fresh or stale bread. You can also make croutons with Sourdough bread. No bread needs to go to waste, including any left over Focaccia.
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Why You Will Like This Recipe.
- It uses up old and stale bread.
- Croutons have many uses, as a garnish for soup and salads, blitz into breadcrumbs and use as a coating for fish or chicken.
Ingredients and Substitutions.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why I may have used them. See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
- Bread - Use fresh of stale bread. Stale bread will slice into cubes a lot easier than fresh.
- Pepper - Black or white pepper - which has a sweeter taste than black pepper, is fine
- Salt - I always try to use Sea Salt, but table salt is fine.
- Oil - Olive Oil for flavour but any oil is fine.
- Cheese - Any firm cheese is fine, now is the time to use up any ends of cheese in the fridge. Chedder, Parmigiano, Gruyere, Emmental. Use whatever cheese you have.
Step by Step Instructions
Learn how to make homemade croutons in the oven with these few step by step instructions. First preheat the oven to 190 deg fan oven and have ready a large baking tray. TIP: There is no need to oil the tray or cover it with baking parchment unless you are using a very old tray and you think the baked cubes of bread will stick.
Step 1: You do not need to remove all the crust from your bread, but if there are any hard edges I would remove them as they will bake even harder in the oven. Slice the bread then cut it into half inch cubes.
Step 2: Place the cubes of bread into a large bowl and add the seasoning and oil. Give everything a good mix.
Step 3: Place the cubes of bread onto the prepared baking tray and grate the cheese over the top. Add as much or as little cheese as you which.
Step 4: Bake in the oven for 8 - 10 mins or until they have a lovely golden colour. If you wish turn them over halfway through baking. TIP: Use a timer, Croutons bake very quickly and will soon burn if you do not keep an eye on them.
Take out of the oven and serve straight away while still warm. Make bread croutons for soup and salads or as a snack to nibble on.
How to Store Homemade Croutons
Room Temperature: Store in an airtight container.
Fridge Friendly: They will keep for a few days in the fridge, but keep them in a suitable container. You may want to heat them again in the oven for a couple of minutes before serving.
Freezer Friendly. Once completely cold, croutons will freeze well for a couple of months in a suitable container. Bring back to room temperature or ideally heat in a moderate oven for a few minutes.
Baker's Tips
- Tip 1 - Keep a close eye on the baking times, baking cubes of bread this way has a tendency to overbake and burn.
- Tip 2 - Make plenty and freeze for later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Croutons can be made using any kind of fresh or stale bread that can be cut into cubes.
Once baked you can add the baked Croutons to a blender such as a Thermomix and blitz until you have breadcrumbs. They will freeze well in a suitable freezer container or freezer bag.
More Sides and Snack Recipes That You May Like to Try.
After making this recipe please let me know how you got on by leaving a comment below. Especially if you used alternative ingredients.
Recipe
Homemade Croutons
Equipment
- Baking Tray
Ingredients
- 5 slices Bread Use fresh or stale dry bread. Use more bread if you wish.
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil or to taste, depending on how much bread you are using.
- Sea Salt or table salt to taste
- Black Pepper ground white pepper is also fine.
- 25 g Cheese Any cheese is fine such as Parmigiano or Chedder cheese. Add more if you wish.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190g fan oven and have ready a large baking tray.
- You do not need to remove all the crust from your bread, but if there are any hard edges I would remove them as they will bake even harder in the oven. Slice the bread then cut it into half inch cubes.5 slices Bread
- Place the cubes of bread into a large bowl and add the seasoning and oil. Give everything a good mix.2 tablespoons Olive Oil, Sea Salt, Black Pepper
- Place the cubes of bread onto the prepared baking tray and grate the cheese over the top. Add as much or as little cheese as you which.25 g Cheese
- Bake in the oven for 8 - 10 mins or until they have a lovely golden colour. If you wish turn them over halfway through baking. TIP: Use a timer, Croutons bake very quickly and will soon burn if you do not keep an eye on them.
Notes
Nutrition
Note: Recipes are tested using Metric only. The provided nutrition information is an estimate for the entire recipe, the calorie accuracy nutritional facts, unit and portion conversion are calculated by a third party app. and are not guaranteed.
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