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
If you remember with a day to go, slice your loaf.
What is the fastest way to make bread stale? ›
If you leave the bread out on the counter to go stale, it can take up to a couple of days to become dry. Prefer a quicker method? Drying your bread in the oven will only take about 40 minutes. You can even do it a few days ahead and store the dried bread cubes in an air-tight container.
How do you simulate day old bread? ›
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.
What makes bread go stale faster? ›
Refrigeration accelerates bread staling, speeding up the recrystallization of amylopectin and amylose. Unless you need stale bread for French toast, it's better to store your bread at room temperature. Or better yet, try freezing your bread.
How to dry bread in an air fryer? ›
Fill your air-fryer basket to the max fill line (if all of your bread fits, great!), set the machine to 300°, and air-fry for five minutes. Pull out the basket, toss the cubed bread to redistribute (and check dryness), and then air-fry for an additional three to five minutes or until completely dry.
How to get bread stale for stuffing? ›
Follow this tip: Stale, dried-out bread makes the best stuffing. Either dry out your bread starting a few days before you plan to make the stuffing by letting it sit out or, if you don't have the extra time, cut the bread into cubes, and then toast over a low heat in the oven until dry.
Is stale bread safe to eat? ›
While the texture and taste of stale food might be a little off, so long as there isn't anything else wrong with it, the food should be fine to eat. You're not going to suffer any stale food side effects. But if your foods are showing other signs of going bad, like mold, it's time to throw it out.
Does wetting stale bread work? ›
Don't toss that loaf of hardened bread. You can revive stale bread with a little water and a warm oven.
Can you microwave stale bread? ›
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.
How do you make bread stale in a hurry? ›
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.
Freezing bread is one of the best ways to keep bread fresh. It allows you to keep bread for a longer time while preserving its quality and texture. In fact, you may find that frozen bread that's been thawed tastes similar to fresh bread. You may want to freeze bread if you know you won't eat it all before it goes bad.
Why do people put bread in the fridge? ›
The bread will develop a stale flavor and texture. If you tightly wrap your bread in plastic and put it in the refrigerator, you can help slow the staling process. Freezing bread is an option to help prevent it from going stale and developing spoilage microbes.
How long does it take for bread to go stale? ›
Commercially baked breads and rolls can be stored at room temperature for 2 to 4 days or 7 to 14 days in the refrigerator. Bread products retain their quality when stored in the freezer for 3 months. Any breads containing meat or hard cooked eggs must be refrigerated within 2 hours.
How can a fresh bread turn into a stale one? ›
When bread goes stale, it's the result of chemical reactions within the loaf. The flour used in most breads contains starch molecules that form a crystalline structure, but when water is added in the baking process, that structure is undone and the water is absorbed.
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.
/b567723a-4244-41e9-aa9b-71356ddd4086--2018-0807_albondigas-al-chipotle_3x2_julia-gartland_290.jpg "How to Make Stale Bread (Yes, on Purpose!) (4)")
/bcb20aec-3014-4763-8642-642b139d7176--2013-1203_clara_strata-015.jpg "How to Make Stale Bread (Yes, on Purpose!) (5)")
/09088022-a911-4704-bee1-6cfb4777fefa--food52_02-27-13-6534.jpg "How to Make Stale Bread (Yes, on Purpose!) (6)")
