Breadcrumbs are a popular way to use stale bread. In this article, we bring you three of the best recipes with breadcrumbs, and because we want to spread the word, we also provide a few neat tricks to improve your home cooking using breadcrumbs.
Elevate your cooking with homemade breadcrumbs
Homemade breadcrumbs can elevate most dishes and are an easy way to add something extra to your everyday cooking. The humble little crumbs can serve as a coating, make a crunchy topping, or be incorporated into minced meat. Below, we go through the three most common ways to integrate breadcrumbs into everyday recipes.
Give your meat or vegetables a crunchy coating
Homemade breadcrumbs are the secret weapon to get a crunchy coating on your meat or vegetables. Find your stale bread and put it to good use by making a big portion of breadcrumbs that can boost your meal. They work with everything from fish and chicken to vegetables such as broccoli or cauliflower. Coat the meat or vegetables in, for example, whipped egg so the breadcrumbs have something to stick to. Whether you cook meat or vegetables, the breadcrumb coating will provide a golden and crispy surface when fried.
Complete your casserole with a gratinated top
Casseroles are a staple in most kitchens, filling stomachs with delicious, comforting flavours. If you want to add to those wonderful dishes, all you need to do is sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Most casseroles will benefit from a gratinated top, so try it next time you make your preferred version. To make it even more luxurious, you can add crumbled salad cheese to the breadcrumbs. The combination will provide a rich, slightly tangy flavour, and while the breadcrumbs turn crunchy, the salad cheese will soften slightly, resulting in a crisp surface and a soft centre.
Add moisture and texture to minced meat dishes
Give your minced meat dishes extra moisture and texture with breadcrumbs. Adding breadcrumbs to, for example, a ground meat burger will retain moisture as you throw it on the grill and ensure each bite will be perfectly succulent. The same goes for meatballs and meatloaf. The meatballs will become extra soft and tender, and you can even add a subtle crunch if you roll them in breadcrumbs as well. If you add breadcrumbs to meatloaf, you will profit from their ability to absorb excess moisture and bind the other ingredients, creating depth and a richer flavour.
Try our recipes
There is almost no end to the number of ways you can incorporate stale bread and breadcrumbs into your cooking. Below, we introduce three of our most popular recipes. First, a recipe for breadcrumbs and then two recipes containing breadcrumbs: cauliflower gratin and bread dumplings. You can also read our article about our most popular leftover bread recipes, where we present an array of recipes that revive stale bread.
Breadcrumbs
It may seem obvious, but to use the breadcrumbs perfectly, you need to know how to make them perfectly. Our recipe for homemade breadcrumbs offers a solid combination of flavour and texture to use in various dishes. Seasoned with salt and pepper, the breadcrumbs can soak up flavour as they turn golden brown in the oven. Use the toasted breadcrumbs for salads, casseroles, soups, and much more.
Cauliflower gratin
Impress your guests with a golden cauliflower gratin with a crispy breadcrumb crust. With cheddar cheese and anchovies, this baked wonder is full of delicious and creamy flavours that work wonderfully with the crunch from the breadcrumbs. The breadcrumbs are infused with rosemary, adding a fresh, herbal boost. Go for the cauliflower gratin anytime you want a cosy meal or side dish.
Bread dumplings
Our recipe for bread dumplings is popular, and we understand why. The small flavour bombs are made mainly of breadcrumbs, milk, and eggs and seasoned with salt, pepper, and parsley. Also known as semmelknödel, they can be served with any type of gravy, sauce, or soup. The tender balls will soak up flavours and create a rich dish, no matter what you serve them with.
The perfect way to use stale bread
Leftover bread, day-old bread, stale bread. There are many names for the bread we have lying around the kitchen, but luckily, there are also many ways to put it to use so it does not go to waste. Read more in our article on what to do with stale bread , in which we address how to keep bread fresh and provide an overview of recipes that can put stale bread to good use.
Find more inspiration for cooking with leftover bread
Breadcrumbs are one way to use leftover bread, but there are many other dishes and recipes to explore. We have made a selection of articles presenting some of our most popular recipes in different categories:
• The best recipes with croutons
To help you keep bread fresh for longer, we have also made a detailed guide on how to store bread.
