Homemade Breadcrumbs
on Jan 31, 2023, Updated Oct 15, 2025
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Still buying store-bought breadcrumbs? Babe, why 😩? This is your official sign to break up with them and start making your own Homemade Breadcrumbs from scratch 🥖✨. My family’s been doing it for as long as I can remember, and once you taste the real deal, there’s no going back. These breadcrumbs are golden, crispy, and loaded with nutty, cheesy flavor from fresh Parmigiano Reggiano 🧀. I make a big batch, toss it in the freezer, and grab it straight from the bag whenever I need that perfect Italian crunch. Ideal for my chicken cutlets, chicken parm, or honestly, anything that deserves a golden crown of crispy goodness.
Key Takeaways
- Make homemade breadcrumbs from scratch for fresher flavor and crunchier texture.
- Use stale baguettes or any bread; add Parmigiano Reggiano and optional herbs for flavor.
- Store breadcrumbs in a freezer bag for up to 6 months; cook directly from the freezer.
- Pair these breadcrumbs with chicken cutlets, baked pasta, or sprinkle over mac and cheese.
- You can customize the recipe with different types of bread and cheese or herbs as desired.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love Homemade Breadcrumbs
Store-bought breadcrumbs had their moment, but it’s time to call it quits 💔. Meet your crunchy new soulmate: Homemade Breadcrumbs 🥖. They’re crispier, cheesier, and honestly, just superior overall. Made with actual bread (wild, right?) and a shower of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano 🧀, they turn every chicken cutlet into a golden dream. I make a big batch, toss it in the freezer, and forget about it until I suddenly need them. Then boom – modern nonna mode activated.
Ingredients
🥖 Baguettes: The heart of the recipe. Slice and then let them dry overnight until completely hard. You can also use frozen stale bread ends collected over time.
🧀 Parmigiano Reggiano: Adds a nutty, cheesy flavor to the breadcrumbs. Use good quality cheese (with a stamped rind), and always grate it fresh for best results.
🌿 Dry Herbs (Optional): Oregano, parsley, or Italian seasoning can be added for extra flavor. You can also leave them out and season as you cook.
Nonna’s Tip 🥖
Use a powerful blender and work in small batches. Overloading it can lead to uneven crumbs or burn out the motor.
Variations and Substitutions for Homemade Breadcrumbs
- Use any type of bread 🍞 you have on hand — baguette, sourdough, gluten-free, whatever you’ve got on hand.
- Mix and match bread varieties for a more complex flavor and texture profile.
- Skip the herbs if you want a plain base, or add oregano, parsley, or Italian seasoning for extra savory notes 🌿.
- Prefer a cheesier blend? Add more Parmigiano Reggiano. Measure with you heart 🧀❤️.
- Add just herbs and skip the cheese to make a lighter, dairy-free version.
Best Served With
- My Authentic Italian Chicken Cutlets or anything that needs a golden, crispy coating 🍗.
- Use them to top baked pasta dishes, stuffed mushrooms, or veggie casseroles.
- Sprinkle them over mac and cheese 🧀 before baking for an extra crunchy finish.
- Add a handful to meatballs or meatloaf for more texture and flavor.
Similar Recipes
Common Questions
They last up to 6 months. Store them in a freezer bag or airtight container.
Certainly! You can use any bread you like or mix different varieties. Gluten-free bread also works well.
Definitely! You can add dry herbs like oregano, parsley, or Italian seasoning, or leave them plain and season as you cook.
Yes, you’ll need a powerful one.
Yes, so use good quality Parmigiano Reggiano with the stamp on the rind and grate it yourself for the best flavor.
Homemade Breadcrumbs
Ingredients
- 2 fresh baguettes, cut into pieces and dried overnight
- 2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, good quality cheese only
- dried herbs like: oregano, parsley, or Italian seasoning, optional
Instructions
- Cut the baguettes into thick slices and let them dry overnight. For this part of the recipe, we store our bread in an unsealed bag or in a baking dish. Alternatively, you can freeze any stale bread ends and collect them until you are ready to make breadcrumbs.
- The next day, the bread should be nice and hard. Using a powerful blender or food processor, add a few pieces at a time, and blend in batches at low speed, gradually turing up the speed to high, about 20 to 30 seconds total. The bread pieces should turn into fine crumbs.
- Tip: work with about 5 slices of bread at a time in my Vitamix. Transfer the blended batches to a large bowl. Repeat until all of the bread is blended to fine crumbs.
- Add the grated Parmigiano cheese to the bowl of bread crumbs. Measure the cheese with your heart; there are no specific measurements here as you can add as much cheese as your heart desires.
- Give everything a good mix, and feel free to add any herbs of choice. At this point, I transfer the breadcrumbs to a resealable freezer bag, but you could also use them straight away in a recipe.
- The breadcrumbs will not clump up and you can use them straight out of the freezer without having to thaw them.
Notes
- Blending Tip: You will need a very powerful blender or food processor for this recipe. Some of our relatives, like our Zio Iginio, used to grate the stale bread on a grater, but this method is very time-consuming.
- Freezing: Feel free to freeze any bread ends throughout the year in a bag. Whenever you’re ready to make breadcrumbs you can throw them into the blender or food processor straight from the freezer.
- Bread Options: You can use any bread of choice or mix and match different varieties of bread. Gluten-free bread also works well here.
- Seasoning: You can season the breadcrumbs or add herbs, but we like to leave them plain and add anything we wish as we cook.
- Cheese: It’s very important you purchase good quality Parmigiano (it should have a stamp on the rind) and grate if yourself, as it makes all the difference in flavor.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I literally never buy breadcrumbs anymore thanks to this recipe! 🙏This homemade recipe is so easy and tastes so much better!!