How to Make Easy Homemade Croutons

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The best Homemade Croutons are made using cubed leftover crusty bread, melted butter or olive oil, fresh crushed garlic, and herbs. Tossed in a cast-iron skillet, slow-baked in the oven with a generous sprinkle of sea salt, garlic powder, and fresh ground pepper. You’ll never buy store-bought croutons again!

These crunchy, savory, buttery homemade croutons are so simple to make and so, so much better than any store-bought croutons you can buy. Not only are you making a special treat for Homemade Ceasar Salad or Tomato Soup, you’re also saving money using leftover bread and a few on-hand kitchen staples.

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE CROUTONS

Basic Ingredients You’ll Need

• All Types of Crusty Bread…any kind of bread will work but hearty bread like Foccacia, French Baguette Bread, Whole Wheat, Sourdough, Ciabatta Bread. Even leftover rolls, hamburger buns, or white sandwich bread. Sweetbreads like day-old banana or cornbreads. This Skillet Cornbread would be deliciously transformed into croutons!
• Butter or Oil…make your homemade croutons as buttery or less buttery as you want! I started out with 1/2 stick of unsalted butter and added about 1/4 stick more before the croutons go in the oven. Oil works a little bit differently. The surface of the oil is smoother than butter, so you need to toss the dry croutons with the oil in a bowl and let it sit for a few minutes before the initial toasting on top of the stove.
• Herbs and Spices…the sky’s the limit for this ingredient group! Fresh or dried…doesn’t matter. I live in Oklahoma so I have a few herbs like Rosemary and Thyme that grow all year. No. 1 ingredient for super yummy croutons is, of course, salt and pepper. I like coarse sea salt. No. 2 ingredient, for me, is garlic and lots of it! Rosemary and thyme are a close third and fourth. Chives, parsley, minced jalapenos, and onions are tremendous as well.

Quick Tip

⭐ If you’re using oil, toss the bread cubes and fresh herbs with the oil in a bowl. Let the cube and oil mixture sit for about 5-10 minutes. Toss again right before you toast on top of the stove in a skillet. Note: Make sure you use all of the oil leftover on the bottom of the bowl.

Basic Method for Crunchy Homemade Croutons⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

• STEP ONE: Melt Butter in a cast-iron skillet.
• STEP TWO: Chop fresh herbs and garlic. Saute until just soft. If you’re using dried herbs and seasonings…add in step three.
• STEP THREE: Add bread cubes, more butter (2 tbls or 1/2 stick), then sprinkle ground herbs, garlic powder, sea salt, pepper, and any other seasonings. Toss to mix and then toast bread cubes until golden.
• STEP FOUR: Bake in the oven at 250^o-275^o for at least 30 minutes. Stir in 15-minute intervals until the croutons are crunchy and golden brown.

Easy Crouton Quick Tip:

⭐ Bread type and size of the bread cube make a big difference in baking times and crunch level. I like bigger bread cubes when using an Artisian type bread. If you’re using leftover sandwich bread, buns, or breadsticks the cooking time will be less. Instead of turning every 15 minutes, toss every 8 or 10 minutes.

Making homemade croutons is one extra step that elevates any salad or soup from beings good to really great. They add that extra special level of flavor and texture. With endless seasoning combinations, these buttery homemade croutons can be easily customized to fit any dish!

HOW TO STORE HOMEMADE CROUTONS

Homemade croutons are totally worth the extra step and store nicely in a ziplock bag for at least a week.

If you’re out of ziplock bags a nice airtight container is just as effective.

CROUTONS FOR CAESAR SALAD AND MORE👇

Homemade croutons are not just for Caesar Salad. Below are a few fantastic recipes just in case you need one…….

Homemade Caesar Salad by the way…I’ve resorted to store-bought croutons before and my people we’re not happy.

Easy Seafood Chowder – Delicious Family Favorite is our Christmas Eve family tradition. The combination of homemade Caesar Salad, buttery and crunchy homemade croutons, and this chowder makes everyone happy😊.

Sprinkle a few leftover croutons on a few of our favorite soups such as Yellow Squash Soup, Simple Savory Butternut Squash Soup, and this delicious Homemade Tomato Soup with Bacon.

These homemade salad dressings are perfect for crispy, garden-fresh salads, especially with these easy croutons sprinkled on top!

• Best Homemade Dijon Italian Salad Dressing
• Cilantro Dill Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
• Best Spicy Jalapeno Chipotle Ranch Dressing
• Homemade Caesar Salad Recipe

Print Pin

Simple Homemade Croutons

Crusty, crunchy, chewy, buttery, savory, herbed, homemade Croutons.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword buttery, crusty, simple

Servings 6

Calories 175kcal

Ingredients

• 1 medium size Crusty Bread Load about 4 cups cut or torn up into pieces
• 3/4 stick unsalted Butter divided, 1/2 stick…then 1/4
• 2 tsp coarse Sea Salt or 1 tsp of fine Sea Salt
• 1 tsp ground fresh black pepper or more to taste
• herbs and spices to taste
• 3 gloves minced Garlic

Instructions

• STEP ONE: Melt Butter in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat.
• STEP TWO: Chop fresh herbs and garlic and saute until just soft. If you're using dried herbs and seasonings…add in the next step.
• STEP THREE: Add bread cubes, a little more butter (2 tbls), then sprinkle ground herbs, garlic salt, sea salt, pepper, and seasonings. Toss to mix and then toast bread cubes until golden.
• STEP FOUR: Bake in the oven at 250^o-275^o for at least 30 minutes. Stir in 15 minutes intervals until the croutons are dark golden brown and crunchy. Serve warm or room temperature.

Notes

If you’re using oil, toss the bread cubes and fresh herbs with the oil in a bowl. Let the cube and oil mixture sit for about 5-10 minutes. Toss again right before you toast on top of the stove in a skillet. Note: Make sure you use all of the oil leftover on the bottom of the bowl.

Bread type and size of the bread cube make a big difference in baking times and crunch level. I like bigger bread cubes when using an Artisian type bread. If you’re using leftover sandwich bread, buns, or breadsticks the cooking time will be less. Instead of turning every 15 minutes, toss every 8 or 10 minutes.

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