What is the best way to store bread? When a loaf is baked, the starch in the flour expands and absorbs moisture, creating a soft and fluffy crumb. Once the bread leaves the oven and encounters the air, it begins to dry out and go stale because starch dislikes exposure to the open air.
To combat this process, bakery founders recommend keeping loaves at room temperature in a simple greaseproof paper bag, avoiding plastic wraps. Bread bins should also be avoided because they can trap moisture, causing the loaf to become sweaty, which softens the crust and promotes mold growth. As for the refrigerator, experts consider it the absolute worst option for storage, noting that chilling bread makes it go stale significantly faster than keeping it at room temperature.
When a loaf is a couple of days old, reheating is the key to restoring freshness. Warming the bread allows trapped water to evaporate and reactivates the starch, meaning a brief stint in the oven can make an older loaf stay fresh for another day or two.
Freezing is by far the best option if you do not plan to finish the loaf within a few days, particularly for those who prefer to toast it later. Slicing the bread beforehand allows you to pull out only what you need, wrap it tightly, freeze it, and toast it straight from the freezer. Alternatively, you can freeze a whole loaf, let it defrost later, and warm it through in an oven set to a low temperature.
If the bread is already on the verge of going stale, bakers suggest several creative ways to use it up. You can tear the loaf into pieces, toss it with olive oil, sea salt, garlic, and thyme, and bake it for ten to twenty minutes to create chunky salad croutons. Slicing the bread thinly and drizzling it with olive oil to dry out in the oven also makes excellent sourdough crisps.
Other practical uses for older bread include keeping a bag of stale ends to turn into breadcrumbs for pasta toppings, chicken schnitzels, meatballs, and fritters. You can also revive an aging loaf by sprinkling it with water, slicing it, and stuffing it with herby garlic butter and cheese before baking to give it new life.