Find a bread sale or bake too much bread to use in a short amount of time? Need to stock gluten-free bread for one person in the family? No problem. You can freeze bread to make it last longer.
Whether you have the occasional hankering for a Chicken Salad Club Sandwich or you like to have a variety of the best breads for sandwiches on hand, freezing bread gives you lots of options and helps you save money.
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Recently, my son was diagnosed with a gluten sensitivity. With one child eating vegan and another dealing with a peanut and walnut allergy, you might think that it’s turned my meal planning upside down.
Maybe, but not really.
Since I know what you can freeze, I’m able to ensure safe and our preferred foods for all my kids, sandwiches included.
Freezing bread is allowing me to stock up and not worry that each has what he wants or needs for a great meal. It can help you, too.
Why Do This
It gives you options. Perhaps you don’t eat sandwiches often, but want the choice to do so without going to the store. Having bread or even freezer sandwiches stashed away gives you some choice in the matter.
It can help accommodate food allergies and preferences. If your household eats differently, freezing bread can be a great way to accommodate allergies and preferences. It makes it so much easier to Meal Plan for Different Diets.
It helps you avoid food waste. If you’ll use it eventually but can’t just right now, why not freeze it to use later and buy yourself some time?
It could save you money. Whether you’ve done a bulk baking session or found a killer sale on baked goods, freezing bread allows you to store your purchases for later, allowing you to Shop Your Kitchen to Save Money on Groceries.
Ingredients
All you need is bread. You can freeze commercial sandwich bread or bread you bake yourself. Even quick breads, like this Easy Carrot Bread Recipe can be frozen.
Make sure your bread is as fresh as possible, but remember that there are lots of ways to give it new life if yours dries out a bit: make croutons or breadcrumbs, for instance.
If you’re freezing home baked bread, be sure to cool it completely on a rack before proceeding.
Step-by-Step Instructions
If you have baked the bread yourself, be sure to cool it completely prior to freezing. If you will use that bread sliced, it may be more convenient to slice it prior to freezing as well.
When you freeze bread, the slices will tend to stick together. So, it’s important to consider when you package it how you will use it later .
Freeze the whole loaf.
Freezing bread is a super simple process. If you know that you’ll use the entire loaf within a few days, you can simply place it in a second bag for extra insulation (reusable grocery bags work well), close it tightly, label it, and store it in the freezer.
Use the same process to freeze sandwich rolls or buns.
If you are freezing baguette, garlic bread, or another bread that is too large for a standard bag, wrap it well in heavy duty aluminum foil prior to storing in the freezer.
Freeze slices portioned out.
If you’ll just want to use a few slices at a time, it’s helpful to separate the slices with patty papers or parchment prior to freezing. Sliced bread frozen in one loaf ends up with the slices sticking together.
- Remove the slices from the bag.
- Stack them in portions, separating each portion with a patty paper.
- Return slices to the original bread bag and seal it carefully.
- Place the loaf of bread in a second bag for extra insulation (reusable grocery bags work well), close it tightly, label it, and store it in the freezer.
You can also wrap portions of slices in plastic wrap or beeswax wrap, but storing it in the original bread bag cuts down on more wrappings you have to buy.
Thawing instructions
Frozen bread thaws quickly at room temperature. Thaw a whole loaf in the wrapping on the counter until ready to use. For slices, remove the number of slices you’d like to use and let them thaw on a plate or cutting board.
For quicker thawing: if you want to use a whole loaf of bread soon, tap the frozen loaf in its bag against the counter a few times to help the slices separate. Lay them out on a work surface and they will thaw in about 15 minutes.
Pro tip: Bread can be toasted from frozen. You can also assemble sandwiches with frozen bread. If you’re packing lunches, it will thaw by lunchtime.
FAQs
Frozen food is good indefinitely, provided that it remains frozen below 0 degrees. Unfortunately, home freezers aren’t always that consistent with the opening and shutting of daily use. Frozen bread will dry out eventually. Try to use it up within three months.
To prevent bread from drying out in the freezer, it’s important that it be wrapped well. You can do this with plastic wrap, bread bags, aluminum foil, or beeswax wrap. For best results, freeze bread with a double layer of wrapping. If you’re looking to avoid plastic, try beeswax wrap and/or reusable silicone bags.
You can freeze almost any kind of bread or baked good, including: baguette, ciabatta, sourdough boule, sourdough rye, sliced sandwich bread, hamburger buns, hot dog buns, and dinner rolls.
What Else Can You Freeze?
How to Freeze Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 loaf your favorite sandwich bread or other roll or baked goods
Instructions
For freezing whole loaves or batches of rolls:
- If baking the bread yourself, cool it completely on a wire rack and slice it for later use.
- If you know that you'll use the entire loaf within a few days, you can simply place store bought bread in a second bag for extra insulation (reusable grocery bags work well), close it tightly, label it, and store it in the freezer. If you're freezing home baked bread, wrap it in plastic wrap and then bag it.
- If you are freezing baguette, garlic bread, or another bread that is too large for a standard bag, wrap it well in heavy duty aluminum foil prior to storing in the freezer.
- If you are freezing rolls or buns, place them in a ziptop freezer bag and remove as much air as possible before sealing and freezing.
For freezing portioned slices of bread:
- If you'll just want to use a few slices at a time, it's helpful to separate the slices with patty papers or parchment prior to freezing. Sliced bread frozen in one loaf ends up with the slices sticking together.
- Remove the slices from the bag. Stack them in portions, separating each portion with a patty paper. Return slices to the original bread bag and seal it carefully.Place the loaf of bread in a second bag for extra insulation (reusable grocery bags work well), close it tightly, label it, and store it in the freezer.
For all breads:
- Label the package well with the date and the name of the recipe. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Beth
Sometimes bread/buns get soggy when thawing. Any trouble shooting tips?