Your Guide to Freezing Bread again, again & again!
There is no denying that bread is a staple and refreezing bread is a handy way to make the leftover bread last longer. If you are a home baker and don’t want to bake bread from scratch after a holiday or long week away, it is a great way to have it available at all times.
However, there may be plenty of problems, such as refreezing process can ruin your bread or thawing may be tricky after refreezing, etc. You might be wondering that can you refreeze bread. The simple answer to this question is ‘yes’, you can refreeze your leftover bread, and it is completely safe.
However, you should refreeze it within 2 days after using it. The bread that has been refrozen become lower-quality and can taste stale. Here we dig into a comprehensive guide on how to refreeze bread that let you enjoy its maximum freshness. Are you ready? Let’s get into it!
Types of Bread that can be frozen:
There are different types of bread that can be frozen including egg-based bread, gluten-free bread, rye-bread and much more.
Refreezing Bread That Contains Eggs
Eggs are used in many bread recipes that help to tenderize the texture of bread and its rise. Moreover, it reduces your bread’s crumbliness. The challah and brioche are the types of bread that are made with eggs.
Gluten-free bread
Gluten-free bread can be easily frozen due to it’s the type of flour used.
Gluten-free bread is denser than bread that contains gluten. That’s why; you may find the most gluten-free bread in a freezable form.
Since it comes in a frozen package, so you can place bread slices back into their original packaging and place them in your freezer. Bear in mind that this bread goes good when consumed up to 3 months of being originally frozen means you can refreeze it, but you need to consume it before this time period is up.
Rye bread
Can you freeze rye bread? Absolutely yes; however, its refreezing and re-thawing process affect its taste and strong flavour. Wrap it in aluminium foil; place it in the freezer bag or airtight container to refreeze your rye bread.
If you manage to store it properly, it will keep in your freezer for up to 3 months or even longer.
Types of Bread that can't be frozen
Sourdough bread contains yeast that is not suitable to refreeze because it will not keep the same crunchy crust. It is a classic type of bread that doesn’t go well in the freezer.
Due to its crust-to-bread ratio, it will not retain the desired crunch and texture you look for in yeast breast, especially sourdough bread. That’s why it is recommended that not to freeze sourdough bread.
Why can you freeze some bread?
Some types of bread can be frozen easily. It is a great way to save your bread loaf before half goes bad. Moreover, defrosting bread is pretty easy. You can thaw it in under 1 minute.
So if you have bought or made bread too much, you can enjoy its crisp again after putting it 10 minutes in the oven. For instance, bread that contains eggs can be freeze easily and doesn’t get soggy when you put it in the toaster.
If bread is too much to finish or your family doesn’t consume bread much, freezing some bread is a logical action. Moreover, it is a smart choice for many reasons. If you manage to freeze it correctly, you can maintain its freshness. In fact, you can use it for up to 3 months. Frozen bread is perfect for making toast too.
Guide to freezing bread properly
Follow the below steps to freeze your bread properly.
Step 1: Wrap Your Bread
If you have baked your bread at home, let it cool completely to prevent it from becoming mouldy. Or you have more bread than you can consume in the next few days; warp the leftover bread in the plastic wrap and then double wrap it in freezer paper or aluminium foil. Here the secret weapon is double wrap to retain its freshness.
Bonus tip: Rather than defrosting a whole load of bread, slice it before freezing. This way, you can take only the slices you’d like to eat.
Step 2: Put it in the Freezer
Now put this double-wrapped bread loaf or bread slices in the freezer and label the best fore date before freezing it. It’s best to use it within 6 months or more. You will find your bread may have freezer burn once best-by-date past.
Is it possible to refreeze bread?
Absolutely, yes, you can freeze your bread and then refreeze it also. It is safe to do this; however, its taste becomes stale very fast. There are plenty of ways to refreeze bread to ensure it doesn’t turn mouldy and retain its taste after thawing.
When it comes to avoiding it tasting off, the tip is that refreeze your bread loaf within 48 hours. Moreover, you should refreeze your bread once. If your freeze your bread, thaw and then refreeze multiple times, it will lose its integrity and flavour that leads to stale taste.
Also, keep in mind that your bread should be cooled before refreezing. If it is heated, condensation will create ice crystals in your bread.
Do the ingredients within the bread affect things?
Bread is made with water, yeast, salt and all-purpose flour. All these ingredients help to have a crisper crust. It can’t last longer. On the other hand, bread that is made with margarine and milk make a non-crispy crust, and this type of bread last longer. However, the leavened bread is more favourable and last longer than that of higher quality.
When refreezing of bread is possible, then most people ask: can you freeze breadcrumbs. Yes, you can freeze breadcrumbs too, and it is easy to freeze them. You can save your old bread without wasting them.
Make breadcrumbs and transfer them to a zip-lock plastic bag and write a best-by-date and freeze for up to 3 months. You can keep them in your fridge until thawed. You can use them in your recipes instead of bought breadcrumbs.
How to defrost properly?
Here is a surefire way to defrost frozen bread to perfection:
- Take the frozen bread out of the sealable plastic bag and let it thaw in your fridge until it is no longer frozen. For a bread load, let it thaw overnight and two to three hours for bread slices.
- Now heat your bread for about 3 to 5 minutes at 380 degrees.
- It will be squishy at first; let it cool until it becomes crispier
Bonus tip: If you don’t have enough time to thaw your bread slice, you can toss it in a toaster oven or toaster.
FAQ's
Which bread freezes best?
The gluten-free bread is dry and crumbly rather than elastic and chewy like other types of bread. So it freezes better than egg and yeast-based bread to retain maximum freshness.
Moreover, rye bread can also be frozen due to its softness and dense texture. You can also defrost it without changing its texture.
Does bread taste different after freezing?
Yes, when you freeze the whole loaf of bread with its packet, it tastes different when you take it out to defrost. This is due to the moisture that is locked in its packet. If you do not properly store bread in the freezer, it will go stale.
If you don’t use frozen bread within the best-by-date, it can suffer from freezer burn too.
How do you defrost bread without making it soggy?
When it comes to defrosting your bread without making it soggy, thaw it under high temperatures. If you defrost it at room temperature, it can go stale and end up tasting bad.
On the other hand, when you heat it at a high temperature, it will get the starch’s molecules and water to break down the ice crystals and give you the best and fully bread.
Either you need to thaw whole loaves or individual slices, below method to thaw your bread. Preheat your oven to 150ºC and warp your bread loaf in a foil, then put it in a baking tray. Now, bake it for around 30 minutes. Bake individual slices for 5 to 10 minutes in order to defrost.
Why does frozen bread get hard?
Freezing bread is not hard, but there are some mistakes that make your bread prone to dry and hard. When you defrost your breast, water sublimated that, leaving it hard. To avoid such issue, you need to wrap your bread in aluminium foil or plastic cling film to keep its natural moisture level.
This way, your frozen bread doesn’t get hard or even dry after thawing. So make sure to wrap your bread in a layer of baking foil or plastic wrap to enjoy its maximum freshness.
Andy
Ever since I started cooking I’ve been fascinated by how different people’s techniques are and how they best utilise the ingredients around them. Even the person living next door will have their own unique way of frying an egg or cooking a salmon fillet.
This fascination led me on a journey across the globe to discover the countless practices and traditions the world of cooking has to offer. I thought you’d enjoy and find value in sharing that journey with me so I created Cooked Best!