Every household could do with some savvy food storage tips, especially when it comes to the dilemma of keeping bread fresh. Bread, much like bananas, has a frustratingly brief window of freshness, often succumbing to mould within three to seven days if kept at room temperature.
To extend the life of your loaf of bread and ward off the unwanted mould, experts have suggested a simple two-step hack that could help you have fresh bread for longer. Luckily, it doesn’t involve freezing, which many people find affects the taste of the bread.Despite freezing being a popular method for preserving bread, many households give it a miss.
Despite freezing being a popular method for preserving bread, many households give it a miss.
But don’t fret, as Frakking Creations has divulged a nifty storage trick on YouTube that promises to keep your bread fresh and “tasting great” for up to a robust 15 days – all without needing to freeze.
The video kicks off with the expert complaining: “Don’t you hate when your bread moulds too fast and you have to waste it by throwing it out? That used to happen to us too until we found a better way to keep it fresher and mould-free for longer.”
To avoid this from happening, “there are only two things to do” – cut holes in the bag and keep the bread in the fridge.
This handy hack works wonders even with bakery bread, which typically contains fewer preservatives than its supermarket counterpart.
Before stashing your bread in the refrigerator, make sure to add some holes in the bag, allowing any moisture to escape rather than condensing inside the bag and accelerating mould growth.
By making small cuts around the top of the bread bag and adding holes to the back and underneath, you can control the moisture level inside the bag.
The YouTuber advised: “When you make small cuts into the bag, the bread will slowly dry out, so you can adjust how many holes you cut to prevent the bread from drying out too much, not enough to mould and by doing this, the bread lasts longer than what you would normally expect.”
However, some bread fans argue that this technique might actually lead to staler bread, potentially shortening its shelf life instead.
The results of the experiment were then demonstrated: “So we just took this bread out of the fridge, we put the holes throughout the bag. And what you want to do when you first do this, is after a few hours, or overnight, take a look to see if there is condensation building up inside.
“In this case, you can see a little bit – it’s not too bad. If you see more condensation than this or bigger drops of water, adjust how many holes are in the bag”, they continued, showing how to monitor and tweak the method for optimal results.
Regarding the longevity of the bread, the expert revealed: “So today is June 1, as you can see, this is the bread that we have been keeping in the fridge.
“Best before date is May 24, and we’ve been able to keep it fresh, and without mould for longer than that time, simply by keeping it in the fridge and by doing this hack. Eight days longer and still tastes great.”
The trick is effective due to the fridge’s cool temperature and reduced moisture, which slows down mould growth, but it’s crucial to strike the right balance of aeration.
The purchase date of the loaf of bread is unknown. However, shop-bought bread typically hits the shelves five to seven days before its use-by date.
As such, this particular loaf could have remained mould-free for up to 15 days.
