Making your own croutons is always a good idea! They take a soup or salad to the next level and are simply much tastier than most store-bought versions.
These homemade crispy bread cubes are hard to resist. I always make a little extra, otherwise I’ll have eaten half of them before they ever make it onto my salad.
Croutons are the perfect solution for using up leftovers: like a baguette from a barbecue or other stale bread instead of throwing it away, which I really hate. And this way, you turn it into something even more delicious.
To make crispy and delicious croutons you really need just a few simple ingredients:
For flavor you can add all sorts of herbs and spices, parmesan cheese or other cheeses of your choosing. See the recipe card for some suggestions!
Another great bonus is that this crouton recipe is incredibly easy to make. Within 5 minutes, they’re cut, seasoned, and in the oven.
Depending on the size of your bread cubes, they need no more than about 15 minutes to come out of the oven golden brown and crispy.
Then comes the hard part: letting them cool completely without touching them before sprinkling them over your dish. 😉
You can also make croutons in a skillet, without using the oven. I especially like this when I only want to make a small batch, for example for 1-2 people, or when I don’t want to turn on the oven because it’s hot outside.
The method is the same, but in this case, you can heat some butter in the pan and toast the bread cubes until crispy. Also very tasty!
Did you bake a whole sheet pan full of croutons and have some left over? Store them in airtight jars or storage containers. Glass containers with bamboo lids are my personal favorite.
Croutons will keep for several weeks, but they taste best if you store them for no more than one week in airtight jars or containers.
Yes, you can freeze croutons airtight for up to three months. If they lose some of their crunch, you can briefly re-toast them in a skillet once fully thawed, and they’ll be ready to use again.
Croutons pair wonderfully with simple soups or salads. Think of a Greek salad or a Caesar salad. You can even sprinkle them over your next pasta salad.
Adding these crispy pieces of stale bread gives your dish extra flavor as well as a crunchy texture. I even once used them to thread onto skewers for a fun appetizer!
Because croutons are so crispy, they add just the right amount of texture to smooth puréed soups, such as:
Absolutely. It really depends on what kind of (stale) bread you have on hand or what you prefer. You can use whole wheat bread, rolls, spelt bread, sourdough, Kaiser rolls, ciabatta, baguette, or sandwich bread. Each type of bread gives a slightly different flavor, which is part of the fun.
Oil is an essential flavor component in this recipe and also helps the salt, pepper, and other seasonings stick to the crispy bread cubes. I don’t recommend leaving it out, but you can substitute it with melted butter if you like.
Of course! You can make them as big or small as you like, but you’ll need to adjust the baking time accordingly. Larger croutons need more time in the oven to become golden brown and crispy. I also recommend filling a baking sheet with bread cubes of the same size so they brown evenly and finish at the same time.
Definitely, you can make countless variations. Below you’ll find my basic recipe, followed by some seasoning ideas. Adjust them to match the dish you’re serving the croutons with. That way, even the same salad can taste different every time.
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