Homemade Croutons come together in minutes and are perfectly seasoned for a delicious crunchy addition to salads or soups.
Homemade Croutons not only taste better than store-bought but are better for you, as you can control the sodium content and quality of bread! They take only minutes to make, using either the oven or an air fryer, and are a great use for stale bread.
Homemade Croutons are Best
Croutons provide just the right amount of crunch and texture a salad needs. Not to mention flavor that sometimes can be lacking in a simple tossed salad.
And they are SO easy to make at home. But croutons are also typically inexpensive to purchase at the grocery store.
So why should you make croutons at home?
- You can control the quality of ingredients. No corn syrup, preservatives, lower in sodium, sugar-free, whole grain--and the list goes on!
- This recipe for homemade croutons is easily modified to be allergy-friendly. You can make them dairy-free, peanut-free, corn-free, even gluten-free.
- They are completely customizable to your flavor preferences! If you love garlic--add more. Hate garlic--omit it! Want to add cheese--go crazy! You get the idea.
What you Need
- Bread: Use any variety of bread you like, such as Italian bread, whole wheat bread, gluten-free bread, and even cornbread makes delicious croutons. This is also a great time to use stale bread.
- Olive Oil: I HIGHLY recommend using good-quality olive oil, not canola or vegetable oil. The olive oil not only allows the bread to toast evenly but also adds flavor to the croutons. And don't worry, you don't need much!
- Seasonings: You can use any combination of dried seasonings you like. I personally opt for garlic powder, dried oregano, dried parsley, and onion powder, which mimic the flavor of store-bought croutons.
How To Make Croutons
- Cut up bread into ½ inch chunks--think bite size!
- Place the cubed bread onto a large rimmed baking sheet.
- In a small bowl seasonings and mix well.
- Drizzle the bread cubes with olive oil and sprinkle the seasoning mix over the bread.
- Use your hands to toss the bread with the seasonings and oil until evenly distributed.
- Spread the bread cubes out into even layer on a large baking sheet. You want to be sure to leave enough space that the croutons crisp up, instead of steam and get soggy in the oven.
- Bake for 10 minutes and then remove the pan from the oven and give the pan a shake, or flip the croutons with a spatula.
- Return the pan to the oven and bake for additional 5 minutes, or until the croutons are browned.
How to Store Croutons
Once croutons have cooled completely, store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Air Fryer Croutons
This recipe for homemade croutons can easily be adapted for an air fyer, but the recipe will need to be cut in half.
- If your model of an air fryer needs to be preheated, heat to 400 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, toss 2 tablespoons of olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon oregano, and 1 teaspoon dried parsley with 4 cups of cubed bread.
- Let the bread sit in the mixture for 2 minutes to absorb the flavor.
- Spread the cubed bread in the basket of the air fryer and toast for 3 minutes at 400 degrees.
- Remove the basket and shake and toast for an additional 3 minutes.
- Check to be sure the bread is evenly toasted, if not, return to the air fryer for 2 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
You really can use any variety of bread you like. But my personal favorite is Italian Bread or French Bread. The mild flavor of these varieties really lets the flavor added to the croutons come through.
Yes! Parmesan cheese works best. Add ¼ cup of grated Parmesan cheese to the seasonings and proceed with the recipe as directed.
No. For uniform croutons, feel free to cut off crusts. However, this is not necessary and in my humble opinion a waste of food.
That will depend on the bread you use. Check the label carefully if you need your croutons to be egg-free, soy-free, dairy-free, and/or corn-free. My recipes for Honey Whole Wheat Bread and Homemade Italian Bread are both nut-free, corn-free, egg-free, soy-free, and dairy-free.
Serving Suggestions
Obviously croutons are delicious on salads, like a BLT Salad or a Copycat Panera Greek Salad, but they are also fabulous when used as a topping for tomato soup or as a base for Homemade Stuffing.
If you made these Homemade Croutons, I would love for you to leave a comment and rating below.
Homemade Croutons
Ingredients
- 8 cups of cubed bread
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut up bread into ½-inch thick cubes. You can opt to remove the crusts if desired, I find they add a nice texture.
- Place diced bread onto a large rimmed baking sheet.
- In a small bowl, mix together salt, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, and parsley.
- Evenly drizzle the olive oil over the bread cubes and then sprinkle the seasonings over the cubed bread. Using your hands, toss to coat the cubes evenly in the seasonings and then spread out the bread onto the sheet pan being sure to not overcrowd the bread so everything browns evenly.
- Let the bread cubes sit for 2 minutes to absorb the flavor and then place the sheet pan into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the pan and flip the croutons or give the pan a good shake. Return to the oven and bake for additional 5 minutes, or until croutons are browned.
- Allow the croutons to cool to room temperature and then use immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- If your model of an air fryer needs to be preheated, heat to 400 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, toss 2 tablespoons of olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon oregano, and 1 teaspoon dried parsley with 4 cups of cubed bread.
- Let the bread sit in the mixture for 2 minutes to absorb the flavor.
- Spread the cubed bread in the basket of the air fryer and toast for 3 minutes at 400 degrees.
- Remove the basket and shake and toast for an additional 3 minutes.
- Check to be sure the bread is evenly toasted, if not, return to the air fryer for 2 minutes.
Noelle
I love how simple making homemade croutons is! This was a great way to do it, will be saving this recipe for sure!
Carrie
We eat a lot of salads and making our own will be awesome. Thank you for sharing.