Main image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons

View on phone

Homemade Crunchy Croutons

10 min

Soup

Homemade staple

10 ingredients or less

One-bowl / one-pot

Have some bread that's going stale? Making your own croutons is a great way to use up any less-than-stellar bread, and this crouton recipe always impresses! They are irresistible on soups, and also a pleasant thing to snack on while cooking.

Servings

(¼ cup per serving)

Total

10 min

Prep

5 min

Cook

5 min

Swap out

Gluten symbol

gluten

Free from

Soy symbol

soy

Peanut symbol

peanut

Treenut symbol

tree nut

Sesame symbol

sesame

Ingredients

  • 4
    slices whole wheat bread
  • 2 Tbsp (30 mL)
    olive oil
  • 1
    garlic clove, crushed (optional)
  • 2 tsp (2 g)
  • 1 tsp (3 g)
    garlic powder
  • 1 tsp (2 g)
    onion powder
  • ½ tsp
    paprika powder
  • ⅛ tsp
    salt
  • 1 pinch
    ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Slice or tear the bread into 1 cm cubes.
  2. Add the bread, oil, garlic, herbs and spices to a large bowl and toss to combine.
  3. For the pan-fried version: heat a bit more oil in a large pan on high heat. Add the coated bread and stir often, cooking for 5 minutes or until golden and crispy.
  4. For the oven-baked version: preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C)*. Spread the coated bread onto a lined baking tray and bake for 7 - 10 minutes, mixing once halfway. Enjoy!

Notes

  • * We used top and bottom heating (not fan-assisted/convection).

Storage

Let us know what you think

Watch it step-by-step!

Nutrition info

Focusing on numbers can harm our relationship with food. Instead, our philosophy is to Nourish the Cells & the Soul. For specific nutrition needs due to a medical condition, consult a dietitian or physician. While we strive to provide accurate nutritional information, we cannot guarantee its accuracy. See our disclaimer for details.

Show nutrition info  

More for the eyes

Process image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons Process image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons Process image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons Process image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons Process image of Homemade Crunchy Croutons

Leave a comment

Rate this post


Leen De Blauwe - Oct. 31, 2024, 12:41 a.m.

Love them so much. And it’s a huge success when I add them to my soup for the family ^_^


Martunia - June 4, 2024, 10:07 a.m.

I make these in the air fryer, they come out perfect every time !


Karima - March 15, 2024, 4:28 p.m.

Simple and easy , miam !


Alex - March 9, 2024, 3 a.m.

I don't have an oven so I used my toaster oven. I definitely should have adjusted the slices of bread used. I will keep this in my mind for next time. Baked for 10 minutes they weren't as crispy as in the picture and we're still a bit soft. However I actually liked this texture so I took them as is. When I try again in the future I will experiment more to get crispier croutons. As for the taste I misplaced my garlic powder, so I used garlic salt and instead of paprika powder I used a seasoning mix that had paprika in it. I left out the Italian seasoning as I don't have that at the moment but kept the measurements for the rest of the ingredients the same. For some reason I expected it to be spice, which it wasn't at all and I have low spice tolerance. Overall 10/10 glad I tried this.

PUL small logo PUL Team - March 10, 2024, 12:31 a.m.

Hey there, Alex, thanks a bunch for taking the time to share your experience with the crouton recipe! It sounds like you adapted the recipe well given your equipment and ingredient substitutions. Happy cooking 🤗


Émilie - Feb. 28, 2024, 8:16 p.m.

Thanks to these my leftover stale bread always wonderfully jazzes my soups.


Nastja - Feb. 21, 2024, 8:36 p.m.

Made this today in air fryer, very delicious!


Jackie Z. (: - Feb. 4, 2024, 11:33 p.m.

Delicious!


Shayda - Jan. 5, 2024, 10:24 p.m.

Better than any croutons I’ve ever had! I baked it and used Ezekiel Flax bread and it turned out amazing!

PUL small logo PUL Team - Jan. 6, 2024, 8:54 p.m.

Woohoo! We're so thrilled to hear, Shayda, thank you :)


Priscila Pereira - Dec. 27, 2023, 2:48 a.m.

Made this today and they are so delicious!


Chrysiida - Nov. 12, 2023, 9:49 p.m.

I used to make croutons from toast bread, so this is the upgrade I didn't know I needed! Definitely my new to-go recipe!

PUL small logo PUL Team - Nov. 13, 2023, 8:22 p.m.

🙌 🙌 thanks, Chrysiida!


Shuchita Tripathi - Nov. 2, 2023, 8:35 p.m.

Tasty and simple.
I made these along with pumpkin ginger soup. Both were tasty.


Jamie R - June 4, 2023, 4:47 a.m.

I decided to make these because I had some leftover bread from a sourdough baguette 🥖 and WOW! So simple, easy, and SO flavorful! Honestly this baking sheet full of croutons might be gone before they make it atop a soup or salad 😂🥗🥣

PUL small logo PUL Team - June 5, 2023, 6:22 a.m.

Whoop whoop 😃 Thanks a bunch, Jamie!


Daniella - April 3, 2023, 7:05 p.m.

Loved it 😍


Eirini - March 22, 2023, 3:38 p.m.

So easy to make and without the conservatives that bought croutons may contain. Tasty too. ;-)


Eshita - July 10, 2022, 9:59 p.m.

❤️❤️❤️


Linda - Oct. 25, 2021, 12:40 a.m.

So easy to make and add the perfect crunch on top of soups.


Salome Van ingen - Oct. 14, 2021, 6:26 p.m.

Easy to make and very tasty! ☺️
Would I make this again? Yes!!

PUL small logo PUL Team - Oct. 15, 2021, 1:18 a.m.

Woohoo! So happy to hear, Salome 🤗


Clare - Sept. 21, 2021, 2:09 p.m.

So yummy!


Samantha - July 8, 2021, 10:53 p.m.

This is such a simple recipe and they taste soo much better than the store-bought croutons. I also like that it gives me a chance to do something with the leftover loaves of fresh bread that I buy. Plus everyone is always very impressed that I made my own croutons. 😂😂

PUL small logo PUL Team - July 11, 2021, 12:36 a.m.

Gotta love impressing everyone! Thank you for the review, Samantha 😊


Cris S - June 5, 2021, 4:41 p.m.

I made the oven-baked version and they came put really crispy, although I burned them a little! 😄

PUL small logo PUL Team - June 5, 2021, 9:55 p.m.

So glad you enjoyed them although they burned a bit, Cris! Ovens can be tricky so we recommend keeping a close eye on them or turning the heat down if needed 😃