The Vital Feature To Check For Before Buying A Bread Box

There's almost nothing bread can't do. From being squished between layers of peanut butter and jelly, buns for chicken sandwiches, toppings for salads, and being revamped as a sweet pudding for dessert, bread is a versatile pantry staple. There are many ways to turn day-old bread into your next plate of dinner or dessert, but there's one tool that can help extend the shelf life of bread even longer: the bread box.

The bread box was standard among home bakers when making homemade bread. The device grew in popularity after the Industrial Revolution, when new baking processes, such as preservatives, allowing bread to last longer.

If you enjoy baking your own bread, having a bread box can help preserve it. It may be the next best thing since sliced bread. With different types of bread boxes on the market, investing in the right one can make or break your next loaf of bread.

To keep your bread as fresh as possible, make sure to have a bread box with tiny holes or a loose lid for proper air ventilation. This helps prevent moisture from the bread from escaping, preventing condensation and mold from growing. Keeping your bread in a box can keep bread fresh for up to one week.

When it comes to bread boxes, there are many styles to choose from that best suit your needs. In addition to a simple bread box with a hinged lid, there are plenty of other bread boxes with different lid options. A cutting board bread box has a removable cover that can double as a cutting board, acting as a two-in-one device. Probably, one of the more recognizable bread boxes is the bread box with a roll-up lid. If you have minimal countertop space and need to optimize space, this box features a lid that slides up.

If you don't have the money or space for a bread box, worry not, as there are other ways to keep bread fresh for as long as possible. While it is easy to keep bread in its original packaging, there are simple methods to ensure you get the most bang for your buck (and your bread).

Keeping bread away from sunlight and at room temperature is ideal. Baker Madelyn Osten tells Food & Wine that bread is best wrapped in paper instead of plastic. "While storing in plastic seems like the right idea, this actually encourages mold growth, resulting in the bread going bad much faster," Osten said. Unlike paper, plastic can retain too much moisture, causing rapid mold growth.

Keep bread in the freezer in a tightly sealed bag to preserve it for even longer. Freezing bread can help retain its crispy exterior and prevent mold growth. Bread kept in the freezer can be kept for up to three months.