Homemade croutons are so easy to make – these baked, whole grain, 4 ingredient croutons will transform your soups and salads into something completely irresistible.
Once you go to a homemade crouton, there’s no going back. They are a major game-changer and your salads, soups and stews will never be the same. In a very, very good way.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Easy: These are ready in less than 15 minutes, start to finish!
- Four Ingredients: That’s right, only four! And aside from the bread, I bet you have them all on hand!
- Irresistible: They’re crunchy. They’re flavorful. And they’re all too easy to pop in your mouth!
- Great use for bread that’s getting stale: If you’re looking for ways to reduce waste in the kitchen, this is a great one! Make croutons out of bread that’s starting to get stale. Win win!
- Way better than store-bought: Seriously. Read the comments.
How to Make Croutons
All you need to do is cut the bread into cubes, toss it with olive oil, garlic powder, and salt, spread them on a baking sheet and bake.
They only take 10 minutes to bake (but if you have really fresh bread, they’ll take longer to get golden brown).
The hardest part, BY FAR, is not eating them all off the baking sheet while they’re still warm. They are an absolutely irresistible combination of chewy and crispy and make for an amazing salad topping or a soup topper.
How to Use Homemade Croutons
I’ve been loving them on top of Italian sausage stew. They star in this traditional panzanella salad and springtime asparagus panzanella salad.
How to Make Croutons on the Stove
I often get asked how to make croutons on the stove. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and toss the croutons around in the hot pan until they are golden brown. You can prepare the croutons exactly the same way if you’re going to make them on the stovetop, and you don’t have to increase the oil unless you want to. I prefer the oven method because it’s slightly more hands-off and frees me up to do other things.More Salad Toppings
- homemade reduced-fat ranch dressing
- fresh raspberry vinaigrette dressing recipe
- vanilla bean candied walnuts
- savory granola (not sweet, and super crunchy with pepitas, sunflower seeds, and chia seeds)
- pepitas (eight recipes!)
- sweet and tangy honey mustard vinaigrette
- olive oil roasted almonds
- seasoned oyster crackers
- pickled red onions
Homemade Croutons
Ingredients
- 4 heaping cups cubed bread (I used a multigrain baguette)
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a large bowl, combine the bread, garlic powder, and salt. Drizzle olive oil over bread while stirring. Stir well until bread is coated by all ingredients and olive oil is absorbed.
- Spread the bread cubes into an even layer on a sheet pan. Don’t crowd the pan. Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. If you’re using super fresh bread, they’ll take a little longer to become golden brown. If the bread is stale and dry, it may brown faster, so keep an eye on it!
Notes
- Serving size: 1/4 cup croutons.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
I purchased a bake and eat baguette. Thought about using that. Wondering if it would dry out if I baked it again
You kind of want it to dry out for the croutons, so it should work well!
Why don’t we always make fresh croutons! So Amazing!!
So much better, aren’t they?! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review and comment :)
How would you store these? For how long?
In an airtight container, room temp, for about a week…if they last that long! They will likely lose some of their fresh-baked texture as time goes on.
These are SO amazing! Seri, could make a carbo meal out of them. We used leftover onion hamburger buns and seasoned as the recipe calls for. Thank you for the inspiration to make homemade croutons using something we probably would have thrown away.
Oh I love onion hamburger buns! I bet that was so delicious!
These are amazing! Never throwing away slightly stale bread again!!
Yay! So glad to hear it!
I made these using your easy recipe. I made them for my wife to use on her salad and will never buy or use store-bought croutons again. You’re absolutely right. They’re hard to stop eating just as a snack.
Yes! I’m so glad you guys liked them. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
Awesome and so easy
So glad you like them!
Made these today for the first time. My family are serious garlic lovers do I upped it to 1/2 tsp each salt and garlic. I also upped the olive oil to 1/2 cup and used my hands to stir and mix. So good!! Thank you for sharing.
So glad this was a hit with your family! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
I’ve made these probably 4 or 5 times now with sourdough bread. They make me honestly look forward to eating salad at lunch. I don’t think I’ll ever buy store bought again!
So glad you like them! They really are a game changer. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
Best and easiest homemade croutons I have ever made! Love this recipe.
Wow, thank you! I appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment, it means so much to me!