Simple salad, honey mustard vinaigrette (4322931349)

A crouton is a piece of rebaked

bread Bread is a staple food prepared from a dough of flour (usually wheat) and water, usually by baking. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cultures' diet. It is one of the oldest human-made f ...

, often cubed and seasoned. Croutons are used to add texture and flavor to salads—notably the

Caesar salad A Caesar salad (also spelled Cesar and Cesare) is a green salad of romaine lettuce and croutons dressed with lemon juice (or lime juice), olive oil, egg, Worcestershire sauce, anchovies, garlic, Dijon mustard, Parmesan cheese, and black pepper ...

— or eaten as a

snack food A snack is a small portion of food generally Eating, eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at home. Traditionally, snack ...

Etymology

The word crouton is derived from the French ''croûton'', itself a

diminutive A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A (abbreviated ) is a word-formati ...

of ''croûte'', meaning "crust". ''Croutons'' are often seen in the shape of small cubes, but they can be of any size and shape, up to a very large slice. Many people now use crouton for croute, so the usage has changed. Historically, however, a croute was a slice of a baguette lightly brushed with oil or clarified butter and baked. In English descriptions of French cooking, ''croûte'' is not only a noun but also has a verb form that describes the cooking process that transforms the bread into the crust.

Preparation

The preparation of croutons is relatively simple. Typically the cubes of bread are lightly coated in oil or butter (which may be seasoned or flavored for variety) and then baked. Croutons can also be cut into sticks. Some commercial preparations use machinery to sprinkle various seasonings on them. Alternatively, they may be fried lightly in butter or vegetable oil, until crisp and brown, to give them a buttery flavor and crunchy texture. Some croutons are prepared with the addition of cheese. Nearly any type of bread—in a loaf or pre-sliced, with or without crust—may be used to make croutons. Dry or stale bread or leftover bread is usually used instead of fresh bread. Once prepared, the croutons will remain fresh far longer than unprepared bread.

List of possible ingredients

* bread * garlic * butter or oil (e.g., olive oil or rapeseed oil) * Parmesan * herbs * spices (ground or whole)

Gastronomy

A dish prepared ''à la Grenobloise'' (in the Grenoble manner) has a garnish of small croutons along with beurre noisette, capers,

parsley Parsley, or garden parsley (''Petroselinum crispum'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to the central and eastern Mediterranean region (Sardinia, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Turkey, southern Italy, Greece, Por ...

, and lemon. Dried and cubed bread is commonly sold in large bags in North America to make Thanksgiving holiday stuffing or dressing. However, these are generally different from salad croutons, being only dry bread instead of buttered or oiled and with other seasonings. File:Large croutons in soup.jpg, Large croutons in a soup. File:Mmm...onion soup (5344349906).jpg, Cheese-covered croutons in an onion soup.

References

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