The extra soft focaccia bread with a bowl of soup is a dinner that makes everyone delighted. How to store focaccia bread? This should be your question when you home-bake this traditional Italian bread and have plenty of leftovers.
It is said that the focaccia bread recipe originated in Italy and later spread worldwide via Italian migrants. The bread is plain, and there is no flavor added. But the most important thing is its softness, like a cloud. The flour that is used in the bread is mixed with some oil and water to make a dough. Yeast is added as the rising agent. The dough is similar to pizza dough, but the amount of yeast added here is higher than that of pizza making. Some called this bread pizza bianca. Focaccia bread can be used to make sandwiches, used in salads, dipped in soups, and as a side dish on your dinner menu.
How to Store Focaccia Bread?
When you keep the leftover focaccia bread at room temperature, you will notice after one day, the texture, appearance, and smell has been changed. These pieces of bread are not safe to consume. If the temperature of your location is low, the staling process will be faster than the areas with hot temperatures. Sometimes if the microorganisms contaminated your focaccia bread, it would spoil, forming black fungus, for instance. Therefore, it is crucial to follow a suitable preservative method once you are done with your meal if you want to save the remaining focaccia bread portion for later use.
How to store focaccia bread? This question becomes important in a way to minimize wastage and save your money and time from baking a loaf another day. There are a few ways you can follow. We will discuss the facts separately. Do scroll down!
How to Store Focaccia Bread at Room Temperature?
It will become stale if you keep your focaccia bread on a plate on your countertop after the meal without proper storage. Therefore, you should place the bread slices inside a Ziploc bag. These can be air tightened. Squeeze the air inside the bag before sealing it completely. If you do not have Ziploc bags, you can use plastic wrap to cover the bread slices. The intention of these coverings is to stop the water loss from bread slices.
When wrapped in an airtight bag, there is no contact with air, moisture, and microorganisms. Therefore, you can keep the bread for about 3-4 days if you have bought it from the shop. If it is homemade bread, the shelf life will be longer than that, and usually, the bread will last about a week without a single change. Make sure you keep it in a cool, dry place. Inside your pantry or a cupboard will be ideal. You can also use an air-tightened container for preservation, but we do not recommend it as it does not allow you to remove the air gathered inside the container when you close the lid. If you use a container, the shelf life of the bread will decrease.
How to Store Focaccia Bread in the Refrigerator?
You can add more days to the preserved period if you refrigerate the remaining amount. But do not just keep the plate inside the fridge. As we have done before, here, too, you have to go with proper wrapping first. If you use focaccia bread in another recipe like a salad or a sandwich, refrigerating is the best method we recommend over keeping it at room temperature. Because when such items are kept at room temperature, there are chances of mold growth taking place.
Wrap the bread in plastic covers or with a Ziploc bag to avoid contact with air. Make sure all the air goes out when you seal those. Furthermore, you can arrange the air-tightened bags in an airtight container.
If you choose the refrigerating method, you could increase the shelf life of your beloved focaccia bread from 3-5 days at room temperature. This means the bread will last about 6-9 days inside the fridge. There is no effect of the place where the bread was produced in this preservation.
How to Store Focaccia Bread in the Freezer?
Freezing will increase the life span of the leftovers. You can either use a Ziploc bag or plastic wrap for the first wrapping. Second, wrapping would give you superior results. Therefore, use aluminum foil to wrap the bread slices or the sandwiches. Then place those in a container that can be sealed well.
When storing, labeling is a must. This is to recognize the best before the date of your preserved foods. Freezing will maximize the time in which the focaccia bread portion lasts without being stale, dry, or spoiled. If you freeze focaccia breed slices, they will last nearly one month.
Note: Whether you follow any of these methods, it is crucial to wait until the bread is completely cooled. If you cover the warm bread, it will make moisture inside the walls of the wrapping, and that water will again fall onto your bread. This will make the bread soggy and a waste.
How to Reheat Focaccia Bread?
- First, take out the necessary amount only and unwrap the bread slices.
- Then place all on a baking sheet.
- Preheat the oven for 10 minutes and place the bread inside. Use a temperature between 350°F- 375°F.
- Take out the warm focaccia bread slices after 6-8 minutes. Do not exceed this time at any cost.
- If you forgot to preheat the oven, you can keep the bread for about 10 minutes and check whether it is nicely warm. If necessary, keep some more time.
- You can spray warm water over the bread slices if you need to make them more similar to the original texture.
- You also can use an air fryer for reheating. In such situations, make sure you check the bread after 3-4 minutes.
Verdict
This article contains valuable information for you if you are facing trouble preserving focaccia bread. Follow the guide, and you will remain with your favorite focaccia, which still feels fresh even after one month.
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