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    Home » Miscellaneous

    Published: Jan 9, 2022 · Modified: Apr 13, 2022 by Harriet · 1 Comment

    How To Make Breadcrumbs Without A Food Processor

    Jump to recipe card

    Here's how to make breadcrumbs without a food processor. It's easy to do, and the results are just as good as using a food processor.

    Main image for article on how to make breadcrumbs without a food processor. A jug with breadcrumbs.
    Jump to:
    • Cost To Make
    • Why You'll Love This Recipe:
    • Ingredients In This Recipe
    • Step By Step Instructions
    • Recipe Tips
    • Storage
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • More Bread Recipes
    • Recipe
    • Comments

    Learn how to make breadcrumbs without a food processor the easy way.

    Cost To Make

    Estimated cost = about $0.27 a cup

    Why You'll Love This Recipe:

    • Making breadcrumbs is a great way to reduce food waste by using leftover bread, dinner rolls, or crust offcuts instead of throwing them in the bin.
    • Breadcrumbs are fast to make and store very well.

    Ingredients In This Recipe

    The printable recipe further down the page has the complete list of ingredients, including quantities and step-by-step instructions.

    Ingredient image

    Bread - you can use sliced, unsliced, or buns. It can be fresh or stale bread, but it should not be moldy. 

    Step By Step Instructions

    Bread cut into small cubes on a baking tray.
    1. Cut the bread into small cubes.

    Step 1 - Cut the bread into small pieces. The smaller the better because they will dry out quicker and are easier to crush.

    If using leftover buns or unsliced bread, first slice these into pieces that are about the same thickness as sliced bread before cutting into cubes.

    Spread the cubes in an even single layer on one or two rimmed baking sheets.

    Oven dried bread on a baking tray.
    2. Dry the bread enough so that you can easily crush them with your fingers.

    Step 2 - Place bread into a preheated oven and bake for 20 - 30 minutes - or until the bread cubes feel dry and crumble when crushed. Remove from the oven, leave on the trays to cool.

    Bread crumbs being crushed by hand.
    3. Use a jar or can to crush the dried bread into crumbs.

    Step 3 - Place the bread onto a shallow container, working in batches, press down on the dried bread with the base of a bottle or tin, crushing the pieces using a twisting and rocking action until you have fine crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to an airtight container as each batch is completed, seal and store.

    Close up of bread crumbs.

    Recipe Tips

    If using leftover buns, first slice these into pieces that are the same thickness as sliced bread before cutting into cubes.

    Other Ways to Make Breadcrumbs Without A Food Processor

    Our preferred method - Is to transfer the crumbs to a ceramic bowl and crush them by pressing down on them with something that has a flat base, like a thick glass jar or something similar.

    If you have cut the bread into tiny pieces and dried them correctly, it will take little effort on your part to make the crumbs.

    • Note: When crushing the breadcrumbs, avoid crushing them on your baking sheets because the hard crumbs are abrasive and can ruin them.

      And don't crush using the lid side of a jar because the paint will come off and go into your crumbs - see the picture below of my first batch of crumbs where I used the lid side and not the base.
    Image of a scratched lid.
    Breadcrumbs are abrasive! Do not crush them on baking trays or use something with a painted surface because they will end up scratched.

    Ziplock bag - If you wanted to, you could crush the crumbs in a ziplock bag and use a rolling pin or mallet, but I've found that this is not always a good idea because the dried bread cubes have hard and sharp edges that eventually end up cutting through the plastic. 

    Use your hands - If you have a small amount to make, you can use your hands to crush the dried bread into crumbs, but it can be rough on the hands. 

    Box grater - To be honest, we haven't tried this method but would imagine it to get quite messy with crumbs going all over the place, and you would need to use big pieces of oven toasted bread instead of the cubes like in our recipe. 

    Other kitchen gadgets - if you have an electric spice grinder or blender you could use those to make breadcrumbs.

    Storage

    Store breadcrumbs in an airtight container or a zip lock bag with the air squeezed out.

    They can be stored in the fridge for up to one month or frozen for up to three.

    Frozen breadcrumbs take very little time to thaw and can be used straight from the freezer.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What type of bread to use?

    The standard bread crumbs sold in the supermarket are white breadcrumbs.

    However, you can use whatever leftover bread you have at home. It could be sliced bread, loaf bread, white, whole wheat, buns, homemade bread, and even gluten-free bread to make breadcrumbs.

    More Bread Recipes

    • Cob bread
    • Hawaiian dinner rolls
    • Apple cinnamon rolls
    • Sweet dinner rolls
    Breadcrumbs in a white dish on a blue green cloth.

    I hope you find the post on How to make breadcrumbs without a food processor helpful. If you do, please leave a comment below because I would love to know.

    You might also like our Panko breadcrumb recipe and how to make bread crumbs with using a food processor.

    Recipe

    A white jug filled with breadcrumbs on a white muslin cloth.

    How To Make Breadcrumbs Without A Food Processor

    Learn how to make breadcrumbs without a food processor the easy way.
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe Share on Facebook Share on Twitter
    Prep Time : 5 minutes mins
    Cook Time : 30 minutes mins
    Hand crushing : 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time : 45 minutes mins
    Cuisine: : Western
    Servings : 2 cups or 172 grams (6 ounces)
    Calories : 378 : kcal
    Estimated Cost (AUD) : about $0.27 a cup
    Author : Harriet

    EQUIPMENT

    • Food processor
    • 1-2 shallow rimmed baking trays
    • Serrated knife
    • Cutting board

    INGREDIENTS

    • 280 grams 10 ounces bread, sliced or loaf bread
    Tap button to prevent your screen from going dark while cooking.

    INSTRUCTIONS

    • Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F)
    • Use a serrated knife to cut the bread into small cubes and arrange in a single layer on one or two baking trays. NOTE: if using leftover buns or an uncut loaf, slice these into pieces that are the same thickness as sliced bread before cutting into cubes.
    • Place bread into the oven and bake for 20 - 30 minutes - or until the bread cubes feel dry and crumble when crushed.
    • Remove from the oven, leave on the trays to cool.
    • Place the bread onto a shallow container, working in batches, press down on the dried bread with the base of a bottle or tin, crushing the pieces using a twisting and rocking action until you have fine crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to an airtight container as each batch is completed, seal and store.
    Nutrition Facts
    How To Make Breadcrumbs Without A Food Processor
    Serving Size
     
    1 cup
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    378
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    5
    g
    8
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    1
    g
    6
    %
    Trans Fat
     
    1
    g
    Polyunsaturated Fat
     
    2
    g
    Monounsaturated Fat
     
    1
    g
    Sodium
     
    727
    mg
    32
    %
    Potassium
     
    255
    mg
    7
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    69
    g
    23
    %
    Fiber
     
    6
    g
    25
    %
    Sugar
     
    9
    g
    10
    %
    Protein
     
    15
    g
    30
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    3
    IU
    0
    %
    Vitamin C
     
    1
    mg
    1
    %
    Calcium
     
    193
    mg
    19
    %
    Iron
     
    5
    mg
    28
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Nutrition Disclosure

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    1. Anna says

      January 13, 2022 at 8:31 am

      5 stars
      Love this!

      Reply

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    Author image.

    Hi, I'm Harriet! The face and photographer behind Recipe Pocket. I am a mother of two who is a cook by day and blogger by night.

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