How to Make Croutons in Cast Iron

“Treat croutons like steak,” is some of the most surprising—and illuminating—cooking advice we’ve received. The chef who gifted us this paradox cooks exemplary versions of both, and his elucidation changed the way we approach skillet-fried (or oven-baked) bread forever. Let’s break it down:

Know your cut.

Not all cuts of beef cook the same, just different breads will yield different textures and cooking times when making croutons. Our ideal loaf for croutons has an airy crumb and is torn into shards—not diced into cubes!—to better grab any added seasonings and flavorings. And because chaos is more fun than order.

Use plenty of oil.

While we don’t deep-fry our steaks, we use a generous amount of oil when cooking them in a Field Skillet, which both ensures an evenly browned exterior and helps to season the skillet. The same goes for croutons, though bread absorbs fat rather than releases it, so you might need to add extra oil or butter during the cooking process.

Sear, don’t slow cook.

Sear, don’t slow cook. When cooking steaks, we use high heat (and in cast iron!) to build a deeply browned crust before the interior is overcooked. Ditto croutons, though at a slightly lower heat.

Don’t crowd the pan.

For the same reason you wouldn’t crowd steaks together in a pan, you shouldn’t crowd croutons either. Steam is the enemy of crunch.

Don’t overdo it.

While it’s obvious that a well-done steak is tougher than a medium-rare one, so too are overcooked croutons. Our ideal crouton texture is crispy on the outside with a slightly spongy interior—it should crunch when you bite into it, but retain enough softness to yield to your teeth. In other words, if your croutons shatter when you stab them with a fork, they’re overcooked.

Add flavor before and after cooking.

We flavor steaks before cooking with salt and pepper, spice rubs, and/or marinades before we cook them, and finish steaks with sauces, compound butters, and finishing salts and oils after. A similar approach works for croutons: add flavorings early in the process (as with the garlic, anchovies, and chile flakes in our recipe below), and more delicate flavors and ingredients—such as lemon zest, chopped herbs, or finely grated cheese—as soon as the bread is finished cooking.