These Sourdough Croutons are so easy and delicious! They’re the perfect way to use up leftover sourdough bread! They keep up to 2 weeks are the perfect addition to soups and salads. Vegan.
I hear you’ve been baking a lot of sourdough bread lately! Eating it, giving it away to family and friends, and even freezing it for later. Here’s one more thing you can do with a leftover sourdough loaf, that I promise will come in handy during soup and salad season- make sourdough croutons!
They are much healthier than store-bought croutons, with no artificial flavorings or preservatives! We make a big batch and have them on hand.
Why You’ll Love sourdough croutons!
- Simple, fast, and easy! You only need sourdough, olive oil, and salt, and 25 minutes.
- Easy to scale. You can make these croutons in any quantity.
- A healthier, vegan alternative. They are much better for you than store-bought, no added flavorings or preservatives, plus they are vegan!
- Use up leftover sourdough. The perfect way to use up a loaf of sourdough bread.
- Long-lasting. Keeps for 2 weeks.
- Delicious! Sourdough is already tasty, but baked with a little oil, salt, and pepper—scrumptious!
Ingredients
- Sourdough bread: Or use any day old bread. Cut or torn into 1-inch cubes.
- Olive oil: You can also use spray olive oil. Use extra virgin olive oil.
- Salt and black pepper: Or try garlic salt, onion salt, or seasoned salt.
- Optional additions: You can add any other seasonings you’d like, such as finely minced garlic cloves, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, or Italian seasoning, but you really don’t need to!
How to Make Homemade Sourdough Croutons
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- In a large bowl, toss the sourdough bread cubes with enough olive oil, drizzle to lightly coat.
- Sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt and pepper and any of the optional additions.
- Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet (use a parchment paper lined baking sheet if you’d like).
- Bake 10-12 minutes, give a stir and continue baking until golden brown, another 3-5 minutes.
Chef’s Tips
- TIP #1: Tearing the bread instead of cutting it is especially good for salads- the raggedy edges cradle the dressing lovingly!
- Tip #2: Taste the seasoned croutons before you bake them, adjusting the salt to taste.
- Tip #3: Hide them if you plan on using them. They have a way of magically disappearing while you are not watching (my husband LOVES snacking on them).
Storage
Once completely cooled, store Homemade Sourdough Bread Croutons in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. You can store them on the counter at room temperature to preserve their crunch.
Optional Variations
In addition to adding more seasonings, like garlic powder, onion powder, or Italian seasoning, here are some other ways to dress up your croutons!
- Parmesan cheese
- Fresh or dried herbs, like fresh thyme or rosemary, thyme, sage or dried parsley or oregano.
- Melt butter (or vegan butter) instead of oil.
FAQs
Yes. Simply place them in a freezer bag to use for later. You can also cube and season the bread, place in the freezer and then toast when you’re ready to enjoy them. Store for up to a month.
When arranging the bread cubes on the pan, make sure they are evenly spaced and not touching. You also want to make sure they cool completely before storing them.
Yes! If you want them to be warm, simply turn the oven or toaster oven to 250F and heat for about 10 minutes.
Use leftover or stale sourdough bread. Any other type of bread works too, but we think sourdough has the BEST flavor!
Yes, simply toss extra breadcrumbs into a food processor to make breadcrumbs.
You can use gluten-free bread instead to make gluten-free croutons.
Ways to Use Sourdough Croutons
- Use in Leek Bread Pudding!
- Use in our baked French Toast
- Use in our Caesar Salad
- Grind up the croutons in a food processor to make sourdough bread crumbs!
- Feel Better Chicken Soup
- Creamy Mushroom Soup
- Curried Cauliflower Soup
I hope you enjoy this Sourdough crouton recipe! Let us know what you think in the comments below!
xoxo
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Sourdough Croutons Recipe
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 cups
- Category: sourdough, bread,
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These Sourdough Croutons are so easy and delicious! They’re the perfect way to use up leftover sourdough bread! They keep up to 2 weeks and are the perfect addition to soups and salads. Vegan.
Ingredients
- 4 cups sourdough bread, cut or torn into 1-inch cubes.
- 2–3 tablespoons olive oil (or use spray olive oil-see notes)
- generous pinch salt and black pepper (taste one!)
- Optional additions: 1 finely minced garlic clove (or 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic powder), 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, sage or thyme, lemon zest, or parmesan cheese.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F
- In a large bowl, toss the cubed sourdough bread with enough olive oil to lightly coat (see notes for a lighter version). If using a different quantity of bread, just lightly coat the bread in olive oil.
- Sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt, pepper, and any optional additions. Toss well. Taste and adjust salt to taste.
- Spread in a single layer on a parchment lined sheet pan.
- Bake 10-12 minutes, give a stir and continue baking until golden, another 3-5 minutes or until golden and fragrant.
- Let cool completely. Store in a sealed container for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
LOWER FAT: For a lighter version- place cubed bread directly on a sheet pan. Spray with spray olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and optional garlic powder. Give a toss. Spray a little more if you like. Bake the same as above.
TIP: Tearing the bread instead of cutting is especially nice for salads- the raggedy edges cradle the dressing lovingly!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ cup
- Calories: 88
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 165.1 mg
- Fat: 4 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.1 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2.3 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
My partner couldn’t stop snacking on them, good tip number 3 ;D
They are hard to resist!
This is great.
Fabulous! I made the sourdough bread and it did not proof long enough and was a bit chewy and dense. So I used to to make these croutons. Turned out great. Had to cook them a bit longer than the recipe called for, probably because the bread was fresh and dense.
Awesome Suzanne!
Can you use fresh bread?
Yes, absolutly!
I recently started working at a bakery and always have tons of sourdough at home, but day 4 or 5 sourdough isn’t the best haha. This is a perfect way to utilize that stale bread and minimize food waste!! Italian seasoning is for sure a winner here
Awesome, yes the croutons have a much longer shelf life and make great gifts!
👋 do these work well with overproofed gummy sourdough bread, has anyone tried?
It does, they can be quite dense, so cut smaller. 🙂
I found it easier to spray the olive oil and sprinkle some garlic salt on the slice(s) of bread first and then cut it into cubes. It gives better coverage. They turned out great 👍
Ah ha! Great idea Lynn. Makes perfect sense!
Not sure where I went wrong, but 4c bread cubes and 1/4c oil were way too oily. Maybe because I used fresh sourdough bread?
Sorry about that. It should state, add oil to coat the bread. I updated the recipe. Really fresh bread would indeed soak up oil. 🙂
These were AMAZING!!!! SO easy and great way to use up my sourdough.
Yay! So glad you enjoyed!
Are your books available to buy?
No, not yet! 😉
Cannot believe how delicious these were! Such a great idea to use up sourdough bread.
Hi Sylvia! I have been making sourdough croutons for years, doing them pretty much the same as your recipe. I kind of wing it and add different spices, but Italian are a sure winner! I am not a fan of the garlic and onion salts, so I used a garlic infused olive oil and it worked great. I also tear my sourdough bread, which gives the crouton extra surface area and more crunch and a more rustic look. I make these in huge batches and do freeze them. My kids gobble these instead of crackers.Oh and I also put in some pumpernickel bread in with the sourdough.
I love tearing the bread too! Great to know these freeze well- thanks!!!
I want to try these! Do you think they would freeze well?
Great question and I’m not sure! I don’t see why not?
Made these croutons for the Tomato Soup you just posted- and both were excellent. I like that these are vegan and low in fat. Lots of flavor from the sourdough.
The best croutons I’ve ever made. Use my leftover sour dough bread.