Bread storage - breadbox??

[BikeBookBread]

I'm a bread baker (but you knew that already ;)). Currently, I store bread very haphazardly - in foil for artisan breads, in big ziplocks for sandwich, etc. I do have a small little expandable acrylic breadbox that I bought at King Arthur flour, but it only holds one homemade 1 - 2 pound loaf.

 

But I've really been wondering about those old-fashioned metal breadboxes. My grandma had one. Does anyone have one? If so, would you comment as to how well they keep bread? We are currently in an extraordinarily dry climate. What about humid climates? Do you just put the inside "naked"? Do you wrap it up?

[Amira]

We got a bread box about 6 or 7 years ago. Ours is wood. I put the bread in a bread bag in addition to putting it in the box. I'm not really sure that the box makes that much difference, since I put it in plastic anyways, but it makes it so people always know where the bread is (or the muffins or whatever).

 

I only store one loaf in there at a time and keep the rest in the freezer. We currently live in a very soggy climate and I have also used the bread box in a very dry climate. I ought to try storing the bread without plastic, since it wouldn't dry out here, but I definitely wouldn't ever store bread unwrapped in bread box in a dry climate, unless it was going to be gone by the end of the day.

[danybug]

I am interested to hear the responses. I put mine into a plastic bag or cover it with a dishtowel on the counter. The bread does not last long around here, but maybe it would be nice to have a breadbox.

[bluemongoose]

It is often to moist here and the bread molds fast. I keep mine in ziplocks in the fridge. I do this for store bought (bagels) and homemade (loaf). I would love a container that would hold and airtight seal one whole loaf....I have never found one!

[KatieJ]

I am a bread baker too. I have a wooden bread box that I store bread in, but it is always in a plastic bag first.

 

I often have severals kind, ( whole grain and light whole wheat or cinnamon) open at the same time. For overflow I use Tupperware. They have some really nice long skinny pieces that work well.

 

I don't know about this tidbit, but I have heard that bread goes stale faster in the fridge than on the counter. Again, it might be an urban myth.

[Chrystal]

We eat gluten-free and I bake my own plus we live in a humid climate (AL). I keep ours in a ziploc in the fridge. There are no preservatives, so it keeps best this way. It also makes it easier to cut thin slices for sandwiches.

[Peela]

We have a wooden bread box on the counter, and a dry climate. We do use the breadbox, but also store bread in the freezer. We tend to either keep or wrap the bread in plastic though.

The only problem with the breadbox is if bread goes mouldy I think the spores tend to live in the breadbox and for a while there it seemed liek our bread was going off very quickly and we thought it might be all the mould spores in the box, so we gave it a good clean.

Its just a convenient way to store bread for us because it dries out in the fridge.

[MaMa2005]

My MIL has a metal bread box. In 28 years, I've yet to see any bread in it :glare:. Hers seems to be the catch all for crackers, crisps, etc.

[LauraGB]

Oh goodness, I had to laugh at the title. I am of no assistance whatsoever in your bread box quest (because I store mine the same way you currently store yours), but I felt compelled to share that growing up, our bread box was the oven. My mom rarely cooked, so she stored pots, pans, cookie sheets and bread in the oven. We did have a bread box on the counter; it was harvest gold metal with a white flower petal design that matched the percolator, but it held the canisters of coffee and sugar for some reason, instead of bread.

[6packofun]

I've heard nothing but good things about these fabric bread bags: http://www.amazon.com/Best-Manufacturers-Reusable-Bread-Storage/dp/B0000VLGIY

 

Reusable/washable and have a drawstring closure. Letting the bread breathe just enough is the key.

[mamato3 all-boy boys]

My grandparents used to have a metal box insert in their bottom drawer for bread, crackers, maybe crackers. The top slid from front 1/2 way back, I think. I'd love to have one myself to store crackers, chips...things that go stale, especially durring the hot summer months.

 

Honestly, I don't know if it worked or not....but I love the idea and the memory.

[Moira in MA]

We keep all our bread sliced and stored in plastic bags in the freezer, except for baguettes which we eat immediately or use for croutons.

 

It works really well.

 

I've always heard that you shouldn't keep bread in the fridge as it get dried out.

 

jmho

~Moira

[BikeBookBread]

I've heard nothing but good things about these fabric bread bags: http://www.amazon.com/Best-Manufacturers-Reusable-Bread-Storage/dp/B0000VLGIY

 

Reusable/washable and have a drawstring closure. Letting the bread breathe just enough is the key.

 

These look really neat! Thanks.

[elise1mds]

My grandfather made a wooden bread box for my husband and I the Christmas after we got married. I've used it ever since. I live in a climate that alternates between humid (spring/summer/early fall) and dry (late fall/winter). The bread seems to keep equally well no matter what. Because there are always at least two bags in there (wheat for sandwiches for kids and I, white for DH's sandwiches, and maybe bagels or cinnamon-raisin bread), I do have to keep them in the bags, but they sure don't dry out or go moldy for at least a couple of weeks, sometimes longer, and that includes my homemade and/or organic breads. I've never experimented to see if they'd mold sooner if they were out on the counter versus in the box, but it sure does keep the counters a lot neater.