These aren’t just any croutons. Set aside your preconceived notion of dry, flavorless croutons from a box. These are Sarah’s Famous Croutons. Well, that’s what I call them. These homemade croutons can be made with any bread, are cooked quickly on the stove, oven, or air fryer, and will elevate any salad from good to great real quick. Let’s crouton!
you don’t need much
Bread: You can use just about any leavened bread in this recipe (unleavened breads, like flatbreads, won’t do as well here). Oil: I love olive oil for this, but you can also use vegetable oil, sunflower, coconut, or any high-heat oil to make these croutons. Salt: A healthy pinch of salt takes these croutons to the next level.
Which bread is best for croutons?
You can use just about any leavened type of bread to make croutons!
Crusty Bread: One of my favorites is sourdough, which has an amazing flavor when toasted. Soft buns: Bread like slider rolls, hot dog buns, or potato rolls. These have a light and delicate texture after sautéing. Loaf: You can also use a loaf of Italian bread, ciabatta, brioche, a baguette, or everyday sandwich bread.
How to Make Homemade Croutons
Making homemade croutons on the stove is so easy and goes like this (scroll to the bottom for full instructions): Step 1: Cut Bread Cutting into cubes gives you prettier croutons while tearing the bread makes more surface area for flavorful oil and salt to cling to. You can leave the crust on or cut it off, your preference! Step 2: Toss With Oil Add the croutons to a bowl and drizzle with oil. Stir everything around so that most of the croutons are evenly coated. You can also add your favorite spices here, like pepper or spice blends. Step 3: Cook The Croutons Until they’re golden brown and crispy! You can do this in your oven, air fryer, or on the stove (instructions for each are below)!
Let’s add some flavor
While I love plain toasty croutons, you can also add some flavorful additions like:
Dried Herbs: Thyme, oregano, and basil are all tasty. Spice Blends: You can also use mixes like everything bagel seasoning or homemade Italian seasoning. The Classics: There’s nothing like a little onion and garlic powder!
How to make croutons with less oil
Adding a little oil is important in helping to develop that toasted flavor, but you can use less oil with this simple trick: spray it on! Drizzling on oil means some parts of the bread are more saturated with oil than others, so you end up needing a bit more. If you want to make croutons with less oil, use a spray bottle (like cooking spray) to evenly coat the pieces.
now that you have croutons let’s use them!
Grilled Broccoli Salad is mind-blowingly good with the addition of homemade croutons. Vegetarian Caesar Salad already calls for croutons, so why not make your own?! Vegan Chicken Caesar Wraps, like the salad, love a good crunchy crouton.
