[food] Breadcrumbs (because, again, this is a conversation I've had recently)

[kaberett]

One of the things that Brits seem to find surprising or weird about how I go about managing a kitchen (other examples include vanilla sugar) is the Jar Of Breadcrumbs.

If you're baking your own bread, or buying non-sliced stuff, you'll be generating a lot of breadcrumbs. Let them go stale (sweep them onto a tray and leave them out for a day or so if you're that way inclined), then pop them in a jar.

Or ends of bread that are going stale before you can finish them: stick them through a food processor, or grate them, or let them go proper hard then put them in a bag and whack it with a rolling pin, and then pop them in a jar.

Or if you find you have bread that goes mouldy before it goes stale (this is more likely if you're keeping it in plastic, or in metal breadbins, or if it's longer-life stuff generally), before the point at which it goes mouldy, slice it up and toast it very lightly or bake it in an oven gently similarly, then apply the steps previous and stick it in a jar.

Okay, Alex, you may at this point very well be saying, but why? So! Herewith the list of things I use breadcrumbs for, probably to be added to as I remember:

• Apfelstrudel
  
• topping pasta bakes
  
• crumbing thing to fry in general (coat with flour, coat with beaten egg, coat with breadcrumbs, drop in hot oil; or in the case of sweet dumplings, fry them with butter and sugar then roll the cooked dumplings in the breadcrumbs)
  
• thickener in sauces/stews/dumplings

& you? & so on!

Comments

[alexseanchai]

This is more sensible than buying breadcrumbs. Which I admit I have done.

[staranise]

My favourite use for breadcrumbs: to assist in binding when mixing homemade hamburger patties. I take the ground beef and add breadcrumbs, finely-diced onions, ketchup, barbecue sauce, and an egg. They are great.

[swaldman]

No, not & me & so on. I do not wish to be coated in breadcrumbs :-P

[hunningham]

We have a jar of vanilla sugar and a plastic tub of breadcrumbs. You are not alone.

[azurelunatic]

I see how this would be Useful if cooking with!

[silveradept]

For those Stateside, breadcrumbs make dressing to go with Thanksgiving turkey, and can also be converted to croutons with the application of a couple extra ingredients.