This homemade Easy Garlic Croutons recipe is utterly delicious and uses just 3 ingredients – bread, butter, and garlic! These oven or air fryer croutons are the perfect addition to soups and salads or great as a snack.
How these 3 Ingredient Croutons came about
Recently I wanted to make a Caesar Salad for dinner and looked around the supermarket for croutons. Due to the heatwave, everyone else seemed to have the same idea so the shelves had been raided.
Hence, when I came home, I created these quick and easy garlic bread-style croutons with reduced-price, white sliced bread.
Stale bread is perfect for croutons as you want them to be dry and crispy, not soft and doughy!
My first attempts were done in my Tefal ActiFry Express. I also tested out making these garlic croutons in the oven which also worked well.
Of course, you can make these garlic croutons in any air fryer and I have now made them in my new Corsori air fryer since I first posted this recipe.
You’ll find instructions for all 3 methods in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
With energy prices soaring I think air fryer croutons are the way to go as most energy efficient.
Why you should make homemade Garlic Croutons
- It’s a great way to use up stale bread (although you can use fresh).
- Manufactured croutons tend not to be buttery but are made with rapeseed oil.
- Shop-bought croutons don’t contain fresh garlic but garlic puree.
- Food safety: If you or a family member suffer from nut allergies, many shop-bought croutons say that they’re made in a factory that handles nuts.
- They are incredibly delicious and moreish!
Ingredients
There are just 3 ingredients involved in making these simple croutons:
- 3 slices of white bread
- 60 g salted butter (room temperature)
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
How to make homemade Croutons (Full recipe at bottom of page)
- Mix softened salted butter with 3 cloves of crushed garlic.
- Spread the garlic butter on both sides of 3 slices of white bread (or bread of choice).
- Chop bread into 1.5 cm – 2 cm dice.
- Place in ActiFry, air fryer, or preheated oven and cook until golden and crisp throughout. (Between 5 – 12 minutes depending on the cooking method).
Substitutions
- Instead of white bread, you can use any bread eg sourdough, wholemeal, Ciabatta etc.
- If you don’t have salted butter, use unsalted butter and add a pinch of salt.
- If you’re vegan you could use vegan spread instead of butter.
- Fresh garlic can be substituted with 2 teaspoons of garlic puree or ½ teaspoon of garlic powder.
Additions
You could add finely chopped fresh parsley or dried parsley but I found the ActiFry shook it off so best suited to a conventional oven or air fryer.
A dusting of finely grated parmesan cheese is another delicious variation.
Is it cheaper to make Garlic Croutons from scratch?
That all depends on the cost of your ingredients and what appliance you use. If you use:
- a standard white loaf at 70p
- a block of salted butter at £1.74
- a bulb of garlic at 30p
the total cost of the ingredients will be 64p.
Then you need to add on the energy price which by January will be about 30p (allowing for 5 minutes of preheating) for the electric oven and about 9 pence for an ActiFry or air fryer. (Calculated from this article in The Guardian).
So, the total cost by January 2022 will be between 73p and 94p approximately and bags of garlic croutons currently cost anywhere between 99p and £1.55. Crouton prices may go up by January!
You also need to factor in your time but as these croutons only take about 5 minutes to prepare it’s not much of a hardship. So, I do believe homemade croutons can be cheaper than store-bought ones.
Is this the Best Buttery Garlic Croutons Recipe Ever?
I’d say yes as it’s such a quick, easy, and fuss-free recipe. There’s no melting butter involved as you just butter the bread with garlic butter, cut it into cubes, and then air fry or bake.
Plus, the use of fresh garlic makes these crunchy croutons super delicious!
Storage
You can store garlic croutons in an airtight container for about 5 days but I seriously doubt they’ll get that old without being devoured!
You can also store croutons in the freezer for up to a month.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve with a Caesar Salad or any salad to add crunch and carbohydrates.
- Use to garnish soups.
- Enjoy them on their own as a tasty snack.
Soup Recipes you could garnish with Garlic Croutons
Here are some of my soup recipes that would go well with homemade garlic croutons!
- Kale Soup
- Roasted Tomato & Garlic Soup
- Broccoli & Cheddar Soup
- Curried Root Vegetable Soup
- Carrot & Fresh Coriander Soup
Salad Recipes that would go well with Easy Garlic Croutons
Croutons are great for adding crunch to salads. Here are some delicious salad recipes to serve with garlic croutons.
- Spam Salad with Garlic Croutons & Gruyère
- Quick Nicoise Style Salad
- Vegan Caesar Salad with Grilled Lettuce
- Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
Pin Garlic Croutons recipe for later!
Leave a comment and rating below when you’ve made this recipe; I love getting your feedback! You can also share your pictures by tagging @FabFood4All over on Instagram.
Easy Garlic Croutons
Equipment
- Chopping mat
- Bowl, small
- Garlic crusher
- Table knife
- Fork
- Kitchen knife
- Baking tray (if using oven)
- Air Fryer/ActiFry
Ingredients
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 60 grams salted butter softened
- 3 slices white bread or bread of choice (stale is best)
Instructions
- If using an air fryer, preheat to 200°C (390°F) or, for a conventional oven preheat to 210°C, fan 190°C, 410°F, or gas mark 7.
- In a small bowl, mix together the softened butter and crushed garlic.
- Butter both sides of the sliced white bread with the garlic butter.
- Chop the bread into 1.5 – 2 cm cubes.
- Air Fryer: Place cubes into the basket and bake for 5 – 6 minutes at 200°C (390°F) or until crisp and golden. ActiFry*: Place cubes in ActiFry and cook until crisp and golden. Mine took 12 minutes (see notes).Oven: Place cubes onto a preheated baking tray and bake for 12 minutes (or until crisp and golden) turning once with a spatula.
- Test to see if the croutons are ready by biting or cutting one in half, it should be crisp all the way through with no sign of doughiness.
- Once cool, use to garnish soups and salads or store in an airtight container.
Video
Notes
- *Timing for the ActiFry is based on an ActiFry Express XL, other models will differ so adjust accordingly.
- Leave your butter in a covered dish on the counter for a constant supply of softened butter.
- Use a cook’s knife to scrape the buttered bread cubes off your chopping board and into the air fryer or baking tray.
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