Sourdough Bread Croutons
I am frequently asked this question when one looks at my Instagram feed: You bake so often, but what do you do with all of the leftover sourdough bread? Enter the most delicious croutons of your life: Sourdough Bread Croutons.
- Several slices of leftover sourdough bread (if not stale, preferably left out overnight to get a little firm), torn irregularly
- 1.5 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil for every cup torn bread
- A handful of dried or fresh herbs (thyme, marjoram, rosemary etc.)
- Salt
- Tear sourdough bread into irregular but uniform pieces as large as you like and place them in a mixing bowl.
- Pour olive oil over the bread with a couple of large pinches of salt and the herbs. Mix well. At this point, taste one of them to see if it’s seasoned well enough. Adjust salt and herbs as necessary.
- Heat a dry skillet over medium-high until quite hot. Add enough of the torn bread mixture to make a single layer in the pan, working in several batches if necessary to avoid crowding. Let the bread pieces sit for a few minutes until they start to sear, then stir occasionally. Watch them in the pan, as they can quickly burn.
- Once all pieces are well-cooked transfer to a bowl lined with paper towels to cool.
Truthfully, most of my sourdough bread gets eaten by my family and me (especially the host of “experimental” loaves), or I bake the bread for friends or an upcoming gathering at my house. In the unfortunate situation where a loaf starts to sneak toward the end of its lifespan, I always find a creative way to work it into a meal.
While you should always store your bread correctly, sometimes it’s helpful to have something for that aging loaf, a handy way to transform stale bread into something to heighten other kitchen dishes. It couldn’t be easier to use leftover sourdough bread and turn it into croutons (and even the finest, most delicious breadcrumbs for breading or frying).
I treat both croutons and breadcrumbs essentially the same way: croutons are larger pieces of toasted bread with herbs, butter, and olive oil, while breadcrumbs are those same croutons rolled out and crushed (or processed in a food processor) until fine pieces remain. The uses for each of these are endless in the kitchen, and they are tremendously easy to make; you won’t find my freezer without a container of breadcrumbs, which are an easy way to elevate a plate of pasta.
And you can make croutons into any size and shape you’d like. For example, bruschetta is essentially a large crouton that can be topped with a myriad of things and served as an appetizer (or even a full meal if the toppings are hearty enough). When I have a group of friends over for dinner, you’ll often find a plate of bruschetta at the table with a drizzle of olive oil, a smear of garlic, diced tomatoes, and torn basil (when in season, of course).
With the holidays approaching, and my last chance to pick the remaining bits of my fresh herbs passing several weeks ago, I decided to make a batch of croutons and breadcrumbs. My secret weapon for Thanksgiving dinner is to use these delectable croutons to transform a simple salad into something much more, a chance to surprise those who might otherwise pass on a bowl of greens.
If you’re used to pre-made and packaged croutons on your salad, you’re in for a real showstopper when you whip up your own—not only is the flavor outstanding, but it no longer becomes a simple accessory to your salad: it becomes a vital ingredient that shares the stage with everything else. Once you make your croutons, you’ll always have a bag of these and a container of breadcrumbs on hand.
Sourdough Bread Croutons Recipe
Posting this as a “recipe” makes me feel strange because it’s effortless. Instead, I hope this post serves more as a reminder for just how much versatility and nourishment you can squeeze out of a single loaf of home-baked sourdough bread. These two simple techniques open up an entire line of kitchen bread uses.
There you have it. It is probably one of the easiest things I do with my leftover sourdough bread: croutons and breadcrumbs. Bread touches a lot of dishes in my kitchen, and you’d be surprised to find out just how many recipes either call for or could benefit from a small sprinkling of fresh breadcrumbs right on top. It’s simple touches like these that can so easily elevate other food in my kitchen while at the same time ensuring an entire loaf of bread is utilized and hardly ever wasted.
Description
There are so many ways to make croutons and breadcrumbs but this is my go-to method that produces a super crunchy and crispy result. I like to pan-fry the torn pieces of sourdough but the pieces could also be baked in a single layer on a baking sheet in the oven (375°F/190°C until golden brown). I preheat my Lodge carbon steel skillet until it’s super hot, toss in a little extra virgin olive oil, sometimes a small pad of butter with the oil, and then the chunks of sourdough. Don’t crowd the pan, you want them to be able to lie flat in a single layer for maximum toasting.
For the ingredients in this recipe, I did two batches in my skillet.
