This recipe for homemade croutons is awesome. They are so good you may just want to eat them as is like a bowl of popcorn!
Homemade croutons are a perfect way to use leftover or stale bread. And they are so much cheaper than store-brought croutons.
Usually used to go on top of salads, especially the Caesar salad, and soups, they are often eaten just as a snack by themselves. The savory crunch of homemade croutons is enough to keep me going back for more. They are either sautéed or baked with a variety of seasonings that can be add.
Croutons are so easy to make at home, if I can do it, you can do it. Let’s get baking!
Step 1: Gather the ingredients
In order to make homemade croutons you need just a handful of easy to find ingredients:
- Bread – I like to use French bread, but you can use pretty much any kind of bread that you want, Italian, whole wheat, white sandwich bread, etc.
- Oil – Olive oil is my choice, because I love the flavor it gives. You can use other oils too if you like.
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Black ground pepper
- Dried Oregano – Or you can use something like an Italian spice blend.
- Crushed red pepper (optional) – If you want a bit of a kick
- Paprika (optional) – For a bit of red color and flavor.
All of these seasonings are optional, you really only need bread and a bit of oil to make homemade croutons.
Tools
- Large bowl
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Sheet pan
- Parchment paper or a silicone mat
Step 2: How to make homemade croutons
Begin by preheating the oven to 300 F/149 C. Then cut up the bread into cubes. When cutting up a loaf of French bread I normally will cut it in half and then lengthwise both ways creating long strips of bread. Next, cut it the other way which creates little cubes.
You can make the croutons whatever size that you want, just try and keep them all around the same size. Somewhere smaller than an inch is pretty good.
Step 3: Season the homemade croutons
Now it is time to season up those cubes of bread. Place all the bread cubes in a large bowl. Then drizzle the olive oil over them. Give them a nice toss to help coat them with the oil. You may not need all of the oil, it just depends on how much bread you wind up using.
Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and dried oregano. As well as any other seasonings you may want to use. You can also combine all the seasonings together in a bowl first and then sprinkle some on, give the bowl a shake, then sprinkle, then shake, until the homemade croutons get seasoned evenly.
Step 4: How to bake croutons at home
Take a sheet pan and line it with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Then spread out the seasoned bread cubes evenly in one layer. If you have too much for one pan, it is better to use two pans or bake them in stages, as opposed to putting them all on one pan.
Bake them in the oven, middle rack position, for 10 to 12 minutes. After that, remove them from the oven and then stir them around and then back in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Repeat that process one more time, so they wind up baking for a total of 30 to 35 minutes.
You will be able to feel that they are crunchy when you stir them. They may or may not be slightly brown when the are done.
Once the homemade croutons are done baking. Allow them to cool until they are room temperature. If you would like to snack on some as they are cooling down, go for it, they are super yummy! Now you can use them on top of your salads, soups, etc. Enjoy!
How long do homemade croutons last?
If you store them in a ziplock bag or an airtight container they will last 3 to 4 days at room temperature. Or you can keep them in the fridge for a week or so, they will lose some of their crunch in the fridge. You can also freeze them for longer term storage for a few months.
Can I make croutons with gluten-free bread?
Yes! You can follow the exact same process with leftover gluten-free bread to make yummy homemade gluten-free croutons.
Here are some other recipes you may like:
Homemade Croutons
Equipment
- Large bowl
- Knife
- Cutting board
- sheet pan
- parchment paper or a silicone mat
Ingredients
- 1/2 to 1 lb bread French, Italian, whole wheat, etc.
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup of olive oil 60 to 78 ml
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder 2g
- 1/2 tsp. salt 2g
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano or Italian spice blend (less than 1g)
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper 1g
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 F/149 C. Then slice the bread into cubes and place them in a large bowl.
- Now, drizzle the olive oil over the cubes of bread. You may not need it all so start with about half of it at first. If you use a full pound of bread then you will probably want to use all of the oil. Then, sprinkle on the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and dried oregano.Alternatively, you can mix the spices together in a separate bowl and then sprinkle them on.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Then spread out the seasoned cubes of bread evenly. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, then stir them. Bake again for 10 to 12 minutes, and then stir them. Repeat one more time until fully baked and crunchy, about 30 to 35 total minutes.
- Once done baking, allow them to cool to room temp and serve them on top of salads, soups, etc. Or just eat them by themselves for a snack, they are that yummy! Enjoy. 🙂
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Do you like the recipe? Please give it a rating and comment down below, I really appreciate it. If you make it tag me on Instagram @inthekitchenwithmatt. Also, sign up for the newsletter so you won’t miss out on any of my new posts and recipes.
I can’t even tell you how much better homemade croutons are than store-bought! Love them with lots of garlic!
I know right?? Sooo much better than store-bought!
These are so good!
Thank you! 🙂
5 stars these were my favorite! They were fun to make delicious to eat!
Thank you, Melissa! 🙂