Although the word croutons sounds fancy, it is simply cubed and sautéed or rebaked bread. In French, the word croûton means “crust”. It is served with the famously known Caesar salad for added texture and flavor.
Croutons can also be eaten as snacks or served as an accompaniment to soups. It can be made in 2 different ways, by sautéing in a pan or baking in the oven. Personally I prefer baking my croûton because it gives me the perfect and uniform golden brown color.
By making homemade croûton,you can adjust how crunchy and flavorful you want them to be. Here is how I make my best homemade croutons:
Ingredients:
4 Cups (225 grams) (4 slices) white bread
2 Cloves (9 grams) garlic
3 Tablespoons (40 grams) melted butter
Salt to taste
Procedure:
method 1:
Cut bread into desired size cubes (for best results,use a day old bread). Finely minced garlic and add to melted butter with a pinch of salt.
Heat oven to 180°c (356°f), place cubed bread in a big bowl and drizzle butter mix on it. Using your hands, coat each piece of bread with butter mix. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and spread bread evenly on it. Bake for 15–20 minutes. Make sure to rotate and flip croutons over half way through baking time.
My favorite way of serving croûton is with a thick, creamy soup, like my delicious carrot ginger cream soup.
Method 2:
Cut bread into desired cubes and mix butter with finely minced garlic and a pinch of salt.
Coat bread with butter mix and sauté in a pan on medium heat. constantly flip croutons over until desired crunch and golden brown color is obtained.