The Science of Stale Bread

• At first glance, bread seems to go stale because it looses moisture. On a deeper level, this is deceptive. Bread tends to dry out over time, but this is a separate process that happens alongside staling. When bread stales, starch molecules draw water molecules out of the gluten in the bread to form crystalline structures. These structures harden over time, causing the dry, crumbly texture we associate with stale bread.

Lean vs. Enriched Dough

• There's no exact distinction between lean and enriched bread doughs. Instead, they are general classifications. Lean doughs have little, if any, fat or sugar. They may incorporate eggs or skim milk to increase the protein, or like French bread, they may leave out these additions. Enriched doughs can range from those with moderate amounts of fat and very little sugar, such as sandwich bread or dinner rolls, to those with significant amounts of fat and little sugar. Brioche is a good example of a rich dough with very little sugar. On the extreme end of enriched doughs are pastries, such as yeast-risen doughnuts or danishes, which have high levels of both fat and sugar.

Prevent French Bread From Staling

• Adding fat to your French bread dough may increase its shelf life, because the fat coats the gluten molecules, preventing the starch molecules from drawing out the water. Without water, the starch molecules cannot form the crystalline structures required for staling. Adding an egg to the dough also increases shelf life. Eggs are emulsifiers, which strengthen the dough and inhibit staling. Adding either of these ingredients would make your bread less classically French. Whether the dough would still be considered a lean dough depends on how much fat you add.

Using Stale French Bread

• If your homemade French bread goes stale before you eat it, you don't have to throw it away. Cut it into 1-inch cubes. Spread the cubes on a sheet pan, sprinkle them with olive oil and bake them in the oven on a low-heat setting until they're completely dry. Use homemade croutons on your favorite salad. You also can make homemade breadcrumbs by putting small pieces of stale French bread in a food processor. Pulse until the bread is broken down into uniform crumbs. Store the breadcrumbs in the freezer to prevent molding.