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Homemade Croutons Made Easy in the Air Fryer

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Saving money is easier than ever when you turn your leftover bread into croutons using this Air Fryer Crouton Recipe! And if you want your family to gobble up a salad every night just put homemade croutons on it.

Fresh croutons cooling before being added to a salad.

Crispy chunks of bread have a new life when you toss them in oil and spices and throw them in the air fryer for a couple of minutes to make homemade croutons.

Fresh air fryer croutons still in the basket.

What Kind of Bread Makes the BEST Homemade Croutons?

The best kind of bread for this crouton recipe is the bread you have at home! No need to buy anything special or expensive to make tasty bread bites for your salad.

A green salad topped with homemade croutons.

I used some leftover french bread because I’d made my family Air Fryer French Toast and had some bread leftover. They tasted great on a steak salad the next day.

Close up of several fresh croutons in the air fryer basket.

BUT I’ve ALSO used plain white bread, whole wheat bread, even rye bread makes great croutons. I suppose you could even use bagels or English muffins if you needed to use them up. What kind of bread do you have?

What do I need to make croutons in the air fryer?

  • An Air Fryer-I USE AND LOVE the Cosori 5.8L Air Fryer
  • 2 cups bread chunks
  • Italian Seasoning
  • Garlic Powder or Granules
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Olive Oil

This is one Air Fryer recipe where you don’t need to spritz with oil. You’re tossing the bread with the oil that’s infused with the spices and herbs so no need to ALSO spritz it.

How to Cut Bread for Homemade Croutons

There’s no wrong or right way to cut bread for croutons. I would just encourage you to cut the bread into bite-sized pieces to make them easier to eat.

But you CAN cut them bigger of course. They can always be two-bite croutons. Or make them smaller if you like as well! It’s totally up to you.

Yield: 2 cups

Homemade Croutons in the Air Fryer

Up close photo of a homeamde crouton.

Homemade croutons from extra bread will make all your salads better!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Additional Time 15 minutes
Total Time 33 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cut up bread
  • 1 TBSP Olive Oil
  • 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • pinch of salt
  • pinch of pepper

Instructions

  1. preheat the Air Fryer for 5 minutes at 400° to cut cooking time
  2. mix the oil with the seasonings, warm briefly over low heat
  3. put the bread chunks in a mixing bowl
  4. drizzle the warmed oil over the bread
    Drizzling the oil over the bread pieces.
  5. toss to coat
    Toss to coat the bread crumbs in the oil.
  6. put in the preheated Air Fryer
    Bread chunks going into the air fryer.
  7. set the Air Fryer to 400° and toast the bread for 5 minutes shaking half way through the cook time
  8. after 5 minutes check the croutons and see if they're brown and toasty, if not toast again in 1 minute increments until done to your liking
    Fresh air fryer croutons still in the basket.
  9. remember crouton will get crispier as they cool off

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laura sampson

About Laura

Laura is on a mission to teach modern family oriented women how to make old-fashioned foods new again. A wife and mom of 3 boys, Laura understands the struggles of trying to serve a home-cooked meal each night. She provides recipes and cooking hacks for busy moms to create dishes they may think take more time or skill than they have to make. Read more...

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