Cornbread Croutons Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep homemade croutons crunchy? ›

Simply make your croutons, place them into a freezer-friendly bag or container, and store them in the freezer. Take them out to thaw and then you're ready to enjoy!

To achieve the crispiest golden crust on your cornbread, Delk Adams instructs you to grease the skillet liberally with bacon grease (if you don't have that, shortening, butter, or oil will do), then pop it into the hot oven for 5 minutes before pouring the batter in.

Cornmeal gives cornbread its classic color and flavor, but too much can make your bread crumbly. Try replacing a little bit of cornmeal with flour. The specific measurements will depend on how much cornmeal and flour is in your recipe, but you should try to have more flour than cornmeal in your batter.

Two things hold cornbread together: Egg and gluten. Gluten forms from the wheat flour interacting with the liquid. In general you don't want too much gluten or the bread will be tough and chewy instead of the characteristic tenderness of cornbread.

Crowding the pan.

Pile the bread cubes on top of each other and they won't have enough space to crisp up and brown. Instead, make sure they're in a even layer.

Croutons that are perfectly crisp right out of the oven will be too hard to eat when they cool. For the perfect crouton, pull them from the oven when they are still have a bit of give to them – as they cool, they will crisp up perfectly. Stale bread will crisp faster in the oven and will need less time to bake.

Cover with aluminum foil to avoid burning and to keep the bread from getting too dry. Bake in a 350-degree F oven for 10 minutes, or until bread is warmed through. For best results, do not exceed 15 minutes of oven time.

Set the batter aside for 10 to 15 minutes.

By letting the cornbread batter sit at room temperature before baking, the cornmeal has some extra time to absorb the flavor from the other ingredients, and the baking powder gets a head start.

Eggs, or egg substitutes help add structure to the cornbread. Without an egg or substitute, the cornbread may crumble and fall apart easily.

For those who don't like their cornbread to be "crumbly," member Jeremy Joseph suggests adding one additional egg white and only two teaspoons of baking powder. Some members had success with substituting alternative flours for the white flour, such as Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Baking Flour.

What is the best cornmeal for cornbread? ›

As for the best cornmeal for cornbread, either fine- or medium-grind cornmeal is a great choice. Medium-grind cornmeal will bring slightly more texture and grittiness to the batter, which you may or may not want (it's up to you!). You can use fine or medium cornmeal in these extra corny muffins.

The batter should be thick, but still pourable. Add more milk or buttermilk if necessary. Remove the skillet from the oven and tilt the pan so the butter coats the bottom and sides of pan.

Pour batter into prepared pan. The batter will be lumpy. Overcome the urge to mix until smooth. Overmixing can cause the corn bread to peak and have tunnels, resulting in a tough texture.

Though it's worth noting that Kent also recommends adding an egg to help keep the dish intact, and egg yolks are pretty fatty. A source of protein such as yogurt may lend stability, but eggs are unbeatable in this regard. Whatever you do, don't add sand or bake your cornbread in the shape of a castle.

Cool a batch of homemade croutons before you store them.

If you toss warm croutons into a storage bag, the bag traps moisture and you'll be left with soggy croutons! To avoid a mushy mess, spread the croutons in a single layer and cool them completely. If you're storing store-bought croutons, you can skip this step.

If you're baking your croutons, make sure they are well-spaced-out on a shallow tray to ensure they crisp evenly and they don't steam, causing them to become soggy. They also need to be in a single layer and not touching.

To Store: Once the baked croutons have cooled completely to room temperature, transfer them to an airtight container or large zip-top bag. Store them on the counter for up to 2 weeks. Freezing: You can also freeze croutons for longer-term storage.