Use it up · Grains, rice and pasta

Bread

Have extra bread? Here’s how to choose, store and prep bread, plus 17 family recipes to use it all up, best matches first.

🍽 See the recipes 🧺 Pick a few things you have

🛒 Choosing it

Squeeze gently: it should spring back. Check the date.

🧊 Storing it

Pantry: 3 to 5 days in its bag
Freezer: 2 to 3 months

The fridge makes bread stale faster; freeze what you won't eat soon.

Keep the fridge at 40°F or below and the freezer at 0°F. Freezer times are for best quality; food kept frozen at 0°F stays safe. When in doubt, throw it out. Times from Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Texas A&M University System and Rutgers Cooperative Extension.

🔪 Prepping it

Stale bread makes French toast, bread pudding, croutons, stuffing and breadcrumbs. Toast slices straight from the freezer.

🥣 Make it from scratch

Sandwich bread Whole-wheat sandwich bread Half whole-wheat sandwich bread French bread and baguettes Italian bread Soft buns and dinner rolls Sourdough bread

It also goes into:

Dry breadcrumbs Panko-style crumbs Croutons

📊 Nutrition per 100 g

Sandwich bread, white. 100 g is about 3 1/2 ounces.

Calories	266 kcal	13%
Protein	8.8 g	18%
Total fat	3.3 g	4%
Saturated fat	0.7 g	3%
Total carbohydrate	49 g	18%
Dietary fiber	2.7 g	10%
Total sugars	5.7 g
Sodium	490 mg	21%
Calcium	144 mg	11%
Iron	3.6 mg	20%
Potassium	126 mg	3%

% Daily Value for adults (FDA). From USDA FoodData Central 174924 (SR Legacy).

🍽 Recipes that use it up

17 recipes, the ones that use the most bread first.

With a smaller amount

Plan them into your week in the meal planner, or find recipes for two or three things at once with the “What can I make?” picker.

More grains, rice and pasta

White rice Brown rice Pasta Egg noodles Oats Quinoa Couscous Barley Cornmeal and grits Flour Tortillas All ingredients →

Storage times and buying tips are general guides from the sources below; follow any date or instructions on the package. Cook meat, poultry, fish and eggs to the USDA safe temperatures in each recipe.