How to Soften Stale French Bread

With a little care, you may be able to revive your stale French bread.

Fresh French bread can be light, airy and delicate with a slightly crisp, crunchy crust. Within a few days, however, this gentle texture can completely transform, becoming hard enough to cut the inside of your mouth if you dare attempt to eat it. Fortunately, if you caught the bread's approaching staleness early enough, there is a solution that spares both your jaw and the garbage can. If the bread is not yet rock solid, you may be able to successfully soften it in just a few minutes.

Things You'll Need

• Aluminum foil

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 300 to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Sprinkle the stale bread with a small amount of water. Your goal here is only to moisten or wet the outside of the bread; you should not use enough water to actually soak the bread or make it soggy.

3. Wrap the bread in a layer of aluminum foil. This will help keep the newly introduced moisture near the bread, causing it to soften.

4. Place the wrapped bread in your preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the bread from the oven and consume immediately, as it will re-harden shortly after you take it out of the oven.

Tips & Warnings

• There are many uses for stale bread; if you cannot revive your loaf, use it for bread crumbs, croutons or bread pudding.

References

• SignOnSanDiego.com: Stale Bread Gets a New Slice of Life
• Chow: Things to Do With Stale Bread
• The Daily Green: 10 Smart Ways to Reuse Stale Bread

Resources

• Real Simple: Delicious Uses for Day-Old Bread
• Culinate: Leftover Bread