How far ahead can bread be cut or torn and dried out?

Question

Would drying out the bread 2-3 weekends in advance be OK?

Gammy · Answer

When drying the stuffing bread, just make sure you oven-dry the bread (as elisamama mentioned) and don't just leave on the counter to get stale. Serious Eats delved into the scientific reasonings here: https://www.seriouseats.com/2016/11/stuffing-use-oven-to-dry-bread-instead-of-stale.html
Also there is a great stuffing/dressing methodology recipe here on our own Food52 that might offer some tips you can modify for making and freezing THIS recipe way ahead of T-Day: https://food52.com/blog/20816-make-ahead-stuffing-for-thanksgiving-recipe

elisamama · Answer

Thanks, Emma. I have dried out the bread via the oven method a week or so in advance with no ill effects for the past few years. I was thinking of doing it even earlier this year, this weekend or next and would love to know if others do too.

Due to DH's restrictions, I switched to GF bread a few years ago and not one guest noticed the difference. It may not as tasty as the challah I had used for years, but it's always delicious. Maybe Canyon Bakehouse (the best GF bread IMHO) will come out with a challah version?

Emma L. · Answer

Hello there! Great Q. I've dried out bread for stuffing several days in advance, but never as long as a couple weeks. It might work, but I can't speak to this method from personal experience (and I usually avoid taking any cooking risks on a big holiday). Curious to hear other community members' take on this!

How far ahead can bread be cut or torn and dried out?

3 Comments

Popular on Food52