The bread turned out soft. How to make bread soft in the microwave: methods and secrets

The bread remains soft as long as it contains moisture, which quickly evaporates. Therefore, after just a couple of hours, the bread becomes unappetizing, and the next day it becomes stale. But if the housewife knows how to make stale bread soft in the microwave, then in a minute she will refresh it.

This is important: you should not soften bread affected by mold, as this fungus is dangerous to health.

Before you throw away the stale pieces, find out how you can easily soften stale bread or rolls in the microwave. Experienced housewives use two options:

Method one: The bread has become slightly stale and needs to be “refreshed”, made soft and fragrant. To do this, cut the bread or roll into slices of medium thickness 1-2 cm. Then sprinkle the bread with water and place it in the microwave chamber for 1 minute. It is advisable to place a saucer or glass of water nearby.

To control the process, it is necessary to check the condition of the slices every 15 seconds so that you don’t end up with dried out bread instead of soft bread. To reduce the dispersion of steam, use a plastic lid designed for use in a microwave oven.

Method two. Stale bread is wrapped in a paper towel soaked in water and wrung out.

The wrapped bread is placed in the chamber for 10 - 20 seconds.

These methods can be used to revive any baked goods. The amount of water used is determined by the dryness of the product. The crackers will take a lot of moisture, but you won’t be able to make soft bread out of them. Dry bread cannot be refreshed twice, so softened bread must be eaten immediately.

Bread that has been softened in the microwave should be eaten within 2 hours. Otherwise he will become callous again.

How else to make bread soft

There are 3 more simple ways to soften stale bread. Let's start with the simplest and fastest.

In a frying pan

The fastest and easiest way to revive bread is to heat a frying pan over low heat, moisten the stale bread with water and place it in a dry frying pan. Keep the slice on low heat for 1 to 5 minutes, turning it over.

In the package

We put the bread in a bag, tie the film tightly, and place it either in the sun or on a hot radiator. Thanks to condensation, the bread becomes soft after a while.

If for some reason you don’t have a microwave, you can make the bread soft again in the oven. If the bread is dry only on top, the slices are wrapped in a paper towel soaked in water and wrung out, placed on a baking sheet or on a wire rack; you can cover the wire rack with parchment, but it is not necessary. Keep in an oven preheated to 160-180 degrees for 2-3 minutes, up to 100-120 degrees - 5-8 minutes.

To process a very dried product, the oven is heated to 160°C, the slices are immersed in boiling water for 2 minutes, then placed on a baking sheet and placed in the chamber for 10 - 15 minutes. The door remains ajar to allow steam to escape.

The disadvantage of softening stale bread using the microwave and oven is that they are used immediately before eating baked goods, and the slices dry out again after a few minutes. To keep the reconstituted bread soft throughout the day, other methods are used:

The loaf is cut into 1 cm thick slices, which are placed in a dry colander and placed in the steam coming from a pan of boiling water. The colander should not be placed close to the water, as the bread may turn into mush. Processing stops when the required softness is achieved.
The sliced bread or the remainder of the loaf is placed in a saucepan with a closed lid, which is placed in a bowl of boiling water. After the water has cooled, the condition of the product is checked. If softening is insufficient, the procedure is repeated.
Slices of bread are placed in a paper bag, and fresh celery is also placed there. The carefully sealed bag is kept in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, during which the moisture from the celery will transfer into the bread.

Rules for storing bread

Do we know how to store bread? We rarely think about this. To avoid allowing baked goods to dry out and then resuscitate them, you should use simple recommendations:

The loaf brought from the store should be stored wrapped in a canvas or linen towel, where it will remain soft for a week. The same result is obtained when using baking paper.
It is better to use a refrigerator to store loaves and buns, placing them on the top shelf, where the temperature is above 2°C. At lower values, products are more intensely dehydrated.
For long-term storage of loaves, bags are used, purchased or made independently from 2 layers of cotton fabric with a plastic film laid between them, in which holes are made.
If you put two lumps of sugar, half an apple or potato, and a pinch of salt in the bread bin to remove mold, the food will remain soft for a long time.

The bread will not go stale longer if you start cutting it from the middle and then combine the halves.

The shelf life of bread is also affected by the choice of placement. For storage in the refrigerator, paper and multi-layer bags should be used. The product is placed in the freezer wrapped in cling film. The bread box must be sealed tightly.

Bread goes stale in just a couple of days, so some people prefer to throw away the stale product or make crackers. Few people know that you can soften stale bread in the microwave or oven. If you don’t have such equipment in your kitchen, then don’t despair, since you can even bring bread back to life with the help of a water bath.

Softening bread using the microwave

It is necessary to use the microwave only if the product will be eaten immediately. If you leave the bread to be stored, after a short amount of time it will turn to stone again.

Algorithm of actions:

Stale bread must be cut into pieces no more than 2 cm thick and lightly sprinkled with water.
Place a container of water in the microwave, place the pieces of the product there and heat for one minute.
If the process is being carried out for the first time, then it is better to check the condition of the bread every 20 seconds.

To better retain moisture, you can cover the product with a special plastic lid, which is designed for a microwave oven.

The main thing is not to overcook the product, because if you heat it for a long time, you will end up with crackers instead of soft, crispy bread.

There is another way to soften bread in the microwave. It is necessary to moisten a kitchen paper towel in water, squeeze it out as much as possible and wrap it around the stale product. Next, you should place the bread in the microwave for 15 or 20 seconds. A damp towel will add more moisture and help trap steam inside the loaf better.

How to refresh bread in the oven

There are two ways to refresh stale bread in the oven. The methods will not return the product to its original texture and aroma, but will help refresh it and make it edible.

Method No. 1.

Preheat the oven to a temperature of 140-150°C, cover a baking tray with baking paper and evenly arrange the pieces of bread on it. The product must also be sprinkled with water, or better yet, covered with a damp kitchen towel or wrapped in foil. Keep in the oven for 5 minutes.

You can soften bread only if it is in good condition and there are no signs of mold. Even if there is no visible plaque, but there is a musty smell, then it is categorically not recommended to use such a product.

Method No. 2.

If sliced bread has dried out, you can restore it with hot water and high temperature. The method is suitable if the product is very stale. First of all, you need to heat the oven to 160 °C and prepare a container with hot, boiled water. Place the bread slices in a bowl and let them soak in water for one minute. After this, place all the pieces on a baking sheet and place it in the oven for 10-15 minutes. It is advisable to keep the door slightly open, this will help achieve a better effect by allowing excess moisture to escape.

Additional bread recovery options

If the basic methods do not help, then you can use auxiliary options to refresh dry bread. Additional methods:

softening in a double boiler;
using a water bath;
paper bag method;
restoring bread in a frying pan.

Double boiler. Here you can soften a hard, weathered loaf, since the bread will not heat up much and will receive a large amount of moisture. You need to boil water in the steamer pan, then remove it from the heat, place a special basket on top and place dry bread behind it. Cover the entire structure with a lid and leave for 5 minutes. During this time, the product will soften and be ready for use.

The procedure should be carried out immediately before eating bread. After 1-1.5, such a product will again become stone, and it will no longer be possible to make it soft again.

Water bath. You need to pour some water into the pan and boil it. There should not be a lot of liquid, 2 centimeters is enough, otherwise all the slices will get wet and fall apart. Place a colander with pieces of bread on top of the pan and heat for 3-5 minutes. Periodically you need to check the condition of the slices so as not to overheat them.

Paper bag. Place the sliced bread in a paper bag and add a stalk of celery to it. The bag must be tied well so that it does not allow air to pass through, and put it in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours. After this, remove the pieces of product and celery from the bag. The stem should dry out noticeably, as it will give up its moisture to the bread.

Pan. The method cannot be called the most effective, but if you don’t have a microwave or oven, you can use it. Slices of bread should be sprinkled with water and placed in a frying pan, preheating it over low heat. The effect will appear in 1-5 minutes. At this time, it is better not to leave the stove and monitor the condition of the product.

If there is no mold or other signs of damage on the product, then it is quite possible to make it soft. It is enough to use one of the listed methods and enjoy the taste of hot and crispy bread.

The bread should be fresh and soft. It is precisely these pieces with a crispy crust and delicate aroma that most people prefer. There’s just one problem: the loaves go stale too quickly and are used as breadcrumbs. If you are not at all happy with this state of affairs, and you want to learn how to return the former freshness to stale bread, then these 3 methods will come in handy.

The main rule to follow: you can only refresh bread that has become stale, but not moldy. If there are clear signs that the product has deteriorated, then you should come to terms with the fact that it cannot be saved.

Bread becomes stale as it loses moisture, so all methods are aimed at re-infusing the pieces with moisture. This can be done in several ways: in the microwave, in the oven or in a double boiler.

1. Microwave oven

The fastest way to soften bread is to microwave the wet pieces. Place a small container of water there. Turn on for 15-20 seconds, check the degree of softness, then repeat 1-2 more times. As a rule, 40-50 seconds is enough for the bread to become soft. You need to check it often, because if you overdo it, it is quite possible that the effect will be exactly the opposite - the pieces will turn into crackers.

2. Oven

In order to soften bread in the oven, you need to cut the same small pieces as for the microwave. Then wrap them in a paper towel soaked in water and place them in an oven preheated to 180 degrees. 2-3 minutes are enough for the bread to become soft again.

If you don’t have a paper towel on hand, but have foil, you can also wrap the bread in it. In this case, the holding time in the oven should be increased to 10-15 minutes. It is important to let the bread cool without unrolling the foil, then it will be truly soft.

3. Steamer or colander with a saucepan

Softening steamed bread is another effective way that housewives know about. This usually takes 1-2 minutes on normal mode if using a double boiler.

If there is no such machine, then the usual steam bath will be an alternative. Place a colander over a pan of boiling water. Pieces of bread are placed at the bottom of the colander, which actively absorb moisture. This method is simple, but requires care: if the bread is left to steam for too long, it may become soggy. In addition, you need to make sure that the bread does not touch the boiling water, this will also ruin the result.

Fragrant fresh bread with a crispy crust, still hot, the smell of which instantly awakens the appetite, is a favorite delicacy for many, but, unfortunately, all bakery products are perishable products and quickly lose their original properties.

One of the main features of changes in bread during storage is its hardening, which occurs due to the evaporation of moisture from the finished product. What to do with such a wasteful product? It is quite possible to refresh it and, using simple methods, make it soft again. Basically, these methods are based on exposure to high temperatures and high humidity. Bread can be made soft again in the microwave, oven, or frying pan using some tricks.

Softening in the microwave

This method is considered one of the fastest and most effective, although it is more suitable for bread in pieces - the thickness of the slices for softening in the microwave should be about 2 centimeters.

This can be done in two ways.

Sprinkle the stale pieces a little with water and place in the oven for a maximum of 60 seconds; additionally, you can place a saucer or glass of warm water in the microwave next to the bread. It is better to check the condition of the slices every 15 seconds - otherwise you can overdry them, making them even tougher. In addition, it is advisable to cover it with a special microwave cover made of plastic.
Soak a paper towel in cool water, squeeze out excess moisture and wrap the dried bread, which is then placed in the microwave with the towel for 10-20 seconds.

Tenderizing in the oven

This method of preparatory operations is practically no different from the method of softening in a microwave oven - the stale pieces are first sprayed with water or wrapped in a damp towel and kept in a preheated oven. At a temperature of 160–180 degrees, it will take 2–3 minutes to soften, at 100–120 degrees – 5–8 minutes.

While still in the oven, you can refresh stale bread by wrapping it in food foil in advance; in this case, the holding time increases - at a temperature of 160–180 degrees it will be 10–15 minutes. Be sure to let the bread cool slightly before removing it from the foil.

Steam recovery

The simplest version of this method is softening in a double boiler or multicooker; for this you need to keep the stale bread in operating mode for 1–2 minutes.

If you don’t have a double boiler or multicooker, you can use a regular saucepan and colander. Place the dry slices or whole piece in a colander over a pan of simmering water. It is important that the water does not touch the bread, otherwise it will turn into a mushy mass. After keeping the stale pieces for 5-7 minutes, you will get completely soft slices that are suitable for consumption. The disadvantage of this method is the need for constant monitoring of the process - the product may absorb excess moisture and will have to be dried.

Restoring softness in the pan

This method cannot be called one of the most effective, although it can be used. Stale bread, as in the case of the oven and microwave, should be lightly moistened with water and then placed in a dry frying pan heated over low heat and left for 1 to 5 minutes.

Soften in a bag

Stale slices or a piece of bread are placed in an ordinary plastic bag, which is tightly tied and placed either on the windowsill, if it is a warm season and it receives direct sunlight, or on the radiator, if, of course, they are hot. The softening process will take quite a long time, but the effect will be longer. After some time, thanks to the condensation that begins to form in the bag, the bread will begin to become soft.

You can place the dry bread in a bag along with the celery root and refrigerate overnight (at least 6 hours). In this case, the pieces of product should be as small as possible. After the specified time has passed, you can see how the celery has dried out, giving up its moisture to the now soft product.

Use of the weathered product

In the event that there is no need to restore the original properties of bread, it can easily be used, namely:

dry additionally, using a mixture of seasonings if necessary, and then use as crackers;
add to the minced meat as an ingredient in cutlets, meatballs, cabbage rolls and any other chopped semi-finished products;
use as part of homemade baked goods - these can be various pies, pies;
make breadcrumbs from dry bread;
Prepare the croutons by first dipping the bread slices in the egg.

It should be borne in mind that it is necessary to soften stale bread immediately before eating it. The reconstituted product remains soft for no more than 2 hours, and it will not be possible to make it soft again.

In addition, when trying to revive stale slices, be sure to check them for the presence of mold, which is quite often found on bread that is not the first freshness. If the product shows at least initial signs of the appearance of mold fungi, then you should not eat it, try to soften it, or add it to other dishes, since eating moldy products can cause very severe food poisoning.

How to store bread so it stays soft longer

In order not to think about how to make stale bread soft again, and not to look for ways to use a stale product, you just need to know how to store it correctly.

In the bread bin. It is this that will ensure the longest shelf life and maintain softness. Additionally, you can put sugar or salt poured into a small container in the bread bin - this trick will maintain the optimal humidity level for storage.
In plastic bags. This will ensure that it stays soft for 4-5 days. It is better to make holes in such bags (using a regular hole punch), since without air access the bread will quickly begin to mold.
In special bread bags. They consist of two layers of cotton fabric, between which there is a polyethylene gasket with holes. You can buy such bags in supermarkets.
In a paper bag or wrapped in a sheet of paper. You should absolutely not use newspapers for this - harmful substances from printing ink can quickly be absorbed into the product.

Try to store bread correctly, do not buy a lot of it so that it does not linger. And if it so happens that the product has become stale, make sure there are no other signs of spoilage and soften it using any of the proposed methods. And Bon Appetit!

The need to soften bread in the microwave arises periodically for any housewife. More than 50% of people do not try to restore the softness of the product by throwing it away. Household appliances allow you to quickly restore the lost freshness of wheat or rye bread.

If you heat stale bread in a microwave oven in a special way, it will become soft again. However, the peculiarity of this method is that you need to eat the bread quickly; after 10-12 hours it will be hard again. Housewives recommend two methods.

The first method is a container of water

Procedure:

Cut stale bread into small pieces - the thickness should be no more than 20 mm.
Moisten each plastic a little with water, but do not allow it to become too soft or liquefied into a pulp.
Pour some water into a flat-bottomed container and place the bread in it.
Place the dishes in the oven, cover with a lid or a special cap.
Set the timer for 2-4 minutes and wait, checking the condition of the bread every 15-20 seconds.

Secrets of success

So that instead of softening the bread does not burn and turn into jelly, it is necessary that, on the one hand, the steam from the container does not leave too quickly, and on the other, it does not linger in the crumb. Therefore, either special dishes for microwaves (with a loose-fitting lid) or a cap with a steam outlet are suitable for the procedure.

There is no need to heat the water before putting the stale pieces into it.

It is extremely important to periodically look into the oven and check the softness of the bread. Otherwise, the plastics will come out crispy, like toast.

Method two - paper towels

This method is perhaps even easier than the previous one.

Procedure:

Take paper or thin textile towels and moisten them with boiled water. If you choose paper towels, you need to make sure they don't tear.
Squeeze as much as possible.
Wrap the bread.
Place in the microwave and turn on the oven for 20 seconds.

A damp towel will release moisture to the bread under the force of heat, the pieces will be saturated with steam and will hold it for several hours.

Softening in the oven

Usually bread is placed in the oven to get crispy crackers, but by following certain rules, you can, on the contrary, soften stale baked goods.

Procedure:

Cut the bread into thick pieces.
Wet the paper towels well and wring them out.
Wrap the pieces.
Place on a baking sheet. A wire rack will also work, but then you first need to cover it with parchment paper.
Heat the oven to 100 or 120 degrees.
Place the bread and set the timer for 7 minutes.

Advice! Instead of a paper towel, you can use a paper bag, also slightly moistened with water, since the main work of softening is carried out by the steam formed during the heating process.

Thus, you should not be upset and throw away bread that has become stale. A microwave and a little steam will restore it to its former softness. In the same way, you can refresh buns and breadsticks that have dried out on top. The main thing is to remember that the power of a microwave oven is higher than that of an oven, so you need to monitor the timer, otherwise you will end up with toast.