Bring Stale Bread Back To Life With An Easy Reheating Trick

Whether you want a satisfying sandwich or a side to soak up some pasta sauce, there are few things more disappointing than finding your beautiful baguette or bread loaf has gone stale. However, you needn't let that get in the way of your mouthwatering meal. All you need to do to soften up hard bread is put your microwave to work.

Breathing new life into your bread requires a little water, whether you use the microwave, oven, or another heating appliance. For singular bread slices or small-to-medium chunks and loaves, just wrap them in a moistened paper towel and nuke them for about ten seconds. After that, your bread should be soft again and ready to join your culinary creations. That being said, if you want to restore the crunchiness on the outside, too, you can also use your toaster, toaster oven, or oven after the bread is finished taking a whirl in the microwave. Just heat it up for a few minutes until it reaches your desired level of crispiness. 

The one caveat here is that your bread won't stay soft forever, so use it up fast. From the moment you bring back a dried-out bagel for a breakfast sandwich or revive a hoagie roll, the clock is ticking — it will eventually revert back to its previous state of staleness.

While you can reheat stale bread to bring it back to life, it's better to take steps to prevent it from drying out in the first place. Bread best retains its moisture at room temperature, so storing it on the counter or in a bread box is your best bet. To ensure that it lasts as long as possible, make sure to protect it by wrapping it in plastic wrap (especially if you don't have a box.) Either way, keep in mind that homemade bread doesn't stay fresh for as long as store-bought, so plan accordingly.

You can also toss bread in the freezer for a few months, wrapped tightly in plastic or sealed in an airtight, zip-top bag. In the case of slices, you can easily transfer them from the freezer to a toaster, so that you can enjoy them immediately. For full loaves, let them thaw overnight before slicing them up. 

If you don't nosh on your newly-revived bread fast enough, or wind up with a stale loaf despite your best efforts, all is not lost. Beyond just breadcrumbs and croutons, there are a plethora of traditional recipes you can make to use up dry bread. Try whipping up a French toast casserole, strata (essentially a savory bread pudding), or Italian panzanella salad. Or, if you feel like getting more creative in the kitchen, incorporate the stale bread into soup or repurpose it to make pillowy pasta.