There’s nothing like tucking into some freshly-baked bread – whether straight from your oven or local supermarket’s bakery section. But once you’ve dug in and have the rest of the loaf to spare, how exactly is best to store it?
I keep mine wrapped in either a brown paper bag (if it’s home-baked) or in the original packaging it came in, and shove it in our bread bin.
Some people swear by sticking it in the fridge. Others slice it, freeze it and pull the odd slice out for toast.
But what’s the best option?
Don’t put it in the fridge, according to experts
While some people believe sliced bread should go in the fridge to help it last longer, the king of baked goods himself, Paul Hollywood, warns against it.
In a TikTok video, the Great British Bake Off (GBBO) host said: “It will stale quicker because it takes the moisture out and dries it quicker.”
Experts at Hovis and Food & Wine second this, with the latter saying “the chemical process that causes bread to go stale has been scientifically shown to speed up when you put a loaf in the fridge”.
If you don’t get through bread quickly and end up throwing mouldy loaves away, Hollywood is a firm believer in freezing it instead.
But there’s a special technique to follow. “Slice it up and wrap each individual slice in cling film and pop it in the freezer,” said the baking pro, “and all you have to do is bring it out, unwrap it, pop it in the toaster – job done.”
The best way to store bread
When asked about the best way to store bread, Hollywood said in a separate video: “To be honest, I just store it in a brown bag and leave it on the side.”
The pros at Hovis agree that storing bread at room temperature is best. They also recommend using a bread bin which provides “a cool, dry environment with just the right amount of air circulation to prevent excess moisture and mould growth”.
Sophie Trueman, in-house food waste expert at Too Good To Go, suggested fresh bread should be stored in a cloth bag or bread basket for “optimal conservation”.
Don’t store it in an airtight bag, she added, as it “will not be able to breathe”.
But if you buy your bread from the supermarket, storing it in its original plastic packaging or in a reusable food wrap should work best to keep it from going stale, according to thekitchn.
And if you do end up with bread to spare, and you’re sick of making bread and butter pudding or croutons, give torte peasana a go.
