Do bread boxes work?

[Jenise]

I mean, they hold stuff, sure. But keep breads fresher longer? Never thought so, and being 'allergic' to counter clutter I never wanted one. But I could put one in my large pantry, and I'm impressed by the comments/reviews about this elegantly modern offering from Williams Sonoma that my friend Chris brought to my attention. Namely, one poster says she put a baguette slice in hers to test it and not only did it not turn into a rock by the next morning it was soft two days later. $99 isn't pocket change, but considering that one pays $4-5 for artisinal loaves, the ability to keep same fresh like that without taking of valuable reefer space could be a winner.

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/glass-and-stainless-steel-bread-box/?bnrid=3102252&cm_ven=E3&cm_cat=EDM&cm_pla=0927_Homekeeping&cm_ite=4hero_cta&cm_em=cmvbbay@gmail.com#reviews

When we remodeled our kitchen we included a built in bread drawer. We keep a number of items in there in addition to bread. It seems to me that not only the bread keeps very nicely but also other items that we also keep in the drawer.

Upstairs we have one similar to the ws one. Growing up I always liked to open ours up because the aromas were always interesting. I like bread boxes. I wish there was more bread in my food pursuits to store there.

Tim

When we remodeled our kitchen we included a built in bread drawer. We keep a number of items in there in addition to bread. It seems to me that not only the bread keeps very nicely but also other items that we also keep in the drawer.

Upstairs we have one similar to the ws one. Growing up I always liked to open ours up because the aromas were always interesting. I like bread boxes. I wish there was more bread in my food pursuits to store there.

Tim

Hmm, Tim, you have me thinking...
I wondering if our warming drawer/oven would work for that while we aren't using it to keep stuff warm.

Never had one. On the same page about counter clutter. The warming drawer works very well for bread, pie, pastry that you don't want to fridge. I imagine the microwave would work as well but I always get a charge out of using something for a purpose other than intended.

[Robin Garr]

How airtight is it? Mary has a big round tin with a VERY tight-fitting lid, and it will keep baguettes for a day or two, which is longer than the same-day eating that they pretty much require if kept in the open. Maybe a breadbox is tight enough to perform a similar service?

Carrie,

Our built in bread drawer has a sliding lid on it.

We also have a warming drawer. I don't use that as much as I used to. Lol...I keep cords, cookie cutters and other items in there. I hope I don't have a senior moment and turn it on without first removing all the items.

Tim

[Jenise]

How airtight is it? Mary has a big round tin with a VERY tight-fitting lid, and it will keep baguettes for a day or two, which is longer than the same-day eating that they pretty much require if kept in the open. Maybe a breadbox is tight enough to perform a similar service?

Beats me, don't know how airtight it needs to be. I've never owned or used a bread box nor did I grow up with one, so I have no opinion about them. I always put my leftovers in a ziploc and fridge them.

[Robin Garr]

fridge them.

Okay, this may be worth a separate thread. I've always been schooled in the belief that refrigerating bread is a guaranteed speed trip to stale. Mary, too, which is why she uses her airtight storage can.

[Jenise]

fridge them.

Okay, this may be worth a separate thread. I've always been schooled in the belief that refrigerating bread is a guaranteed speed trip to stale. Mary, too, which is why she uses her airtight storage can.

Why would that be? As long as you stop the air flow (a la zip loc) you're achieving the same thing as a bread box, but at a lower temperature which is typically a preservative measure. Okay, where are the scientists?

I thought putting bread in the refrigerator caused the starches to tighten up and make the bread less enjoyable.

I've never used a bread box. We freeze all our breads, they keep very well. Triple wrapped and as air tight as I can get them. Just thawed some hot dog buns I had for grandkids last summer. They were fine. If the grand kids ate them, you have got to know they are OK. This generation is very fussy!

Do bread boxes work? Of course they do. Without them, what would you say in guessing games? Is it bigger than a ..................................................................

Our old house has tin lined cupboards especially made as bread boxes. I think we stopped using them for that in the late 50s and do what most people do - into the plastic bag on the counter, or into the freezer if we won't consume it within a few days.

On getting stale faster in the fridge, see http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2011/08/bread-goes-stale-about-six-times-faster-in-the-refrigerator-than-at-room-temperature/ (or wait until our resident biochemists chime in)

[Robin Garr]

Why would that be? As long as you stop the air flow (a la zip loc) you're achieving the same thing as a bread box, but at a lower temperature which is typically a preservative measure. Okay, where are the scientists?

I'm not a scientist, I'm an English major, but I do act like I know a little food science. It has to do with the amount of moisture that air can hold, which varies with temperature. Cooler air = dryer air, and it sucks moisture out of whatever is in it.

Maybe a tight container reduces the speed of this process, but I assume that at the molecular level, O2 and water vapor can still get through. Now we DO need the scientists.

My sister emailed me that I can expect a shipment soon - I'm looking forward to having this beauty on my counter.

I'm not a scientist, I'm an English major, but I do act like I know a little food science. It has to do with the amount of moisture that air can hold, which varies with temperature. Cooler air = dryer air, and it sucks moisture out of whatever is in it.

Hmm, no idea re the bread thing. And I'm even less a scientist. But I think while cooler air does generally mean drier air (in terms of absolute humidity), that's because cool air can't hold the same amount of water as warm air. That's why we we generally use relative humidity as a measure(but 50% relative humidity at 40 degrees is a lot less water than 50% at 90). But that's why you use a clothes dryer- the heat lets air absorb more water. If you put a wet pair of jeans on a clothesline at 40 degrees you're going to wait a while for the jeans to dry. I think humidity within refrigerators varies a lot- how often is it opened, what absolute humidity in house is like, etc

We don't go through much bread, and while it may be true that it stales "six times faster" there, it also goes moldy quite about six times slower. This is why God invented the toaster. Stale bread is not irrevocably stale, while moldy bread is unsafe to eat. (To go back to the food safety thread, the spores apparently can grow in humans, and can be found an inch away from visible mold/fungus. Throw it out.)

[Robin Garr]

moldy bread is unsafe to eat.

Unpleasant, anyway, and occasionally unsafe. Best avoided for sure. For a balanced appraisal, the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service offers these tips:

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fact_Sheets/Mo ... /index.asp

Don't forget, wine is just grape juice spoiled by yeast (another fungus, like mould)!

[Robin Garr]

Don't forget, wine is just grape juice spoiled by yeast (another fungus, like mould)!

I don't think mycotoxins are an issue in wine, though.

"Mold" looks funny in British.

We don't go through much bread, and while it may be true that it stales "six times faster" there, it also goes moldy quite about six times slower. This is why God invented the toaster. Stale bread is not irrevocably stale, while moldy bread is unsafe to eat. (To go back to the food safety thread, the spores apparently can grow in humans, and can be found an inch away from visible mold/fungus. Throw it out.)

Walt, I won't say that I didn't know that moldy food is not good for me, but I will admit that I often times eat it anyway. Two foods in particular. I buy small sandwich size focaccia and yesterday I noticed the last one left in the package was going mouldy (is that spelled wright Bill? ) Anyway, I simply thinly sliced off the offending portion of the bread and proceeded to make and eat my sandwich. The other food is cheese, I sometimes don't even bother to cut the mold away, just it mold and all. Put it on a focaccia and it's not even noticeable!

Do bread boxes work? Of course they do. Without them, what would you say in guessing games? Is it bigger than a ..................................................................

Oh no!
I recall I gave the brains of the operation such a hard time for saying "it's bigger than a bread box" (after all I thought, they come in all shapes and sizes). If this is a common phrase, then I'm going to have to apologise to her