How to make & freeze breadcrumb

Fresh breadcrumbs freeze well and are a great way to use up leftover bread.

How to make your own breadcrumbs:
You can use bought breadcrumbs to crumb foods, but if you have a food processor it's easy to make your own. Remove the crusts from day-old white bread slices and cut into cubes. Transfer the cubes to the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped.

Freezing breadcrumbs:
Once you've made your breadcrumbs, transfer to a sealable plastic bag. Label, date and freeze for up to three months. Place the frozen breadcrumbs in the fridge until thawed, then use instead of bought breadcrumbs in recipes.

Creative crumbing combinations:
Now that you know the basics of crumbing, you can vary the flavours in your coating to create a range of delicious meals. Try these ideas.
1. Add ground spices, such as cumin, paprika or cayenne pepper, to the flour mixture.
A little finely grated cheese, such as parmesan or cheddar, combines well with fresh or dried (packaged) breadcrumbs.

2. Add other flavouring ingredients, such as finely chopped pitted black or green olives, sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped capers or lightly toasted sesame seeds to the breadcrumb mixture.

3. Add finely chopped fresh herbs, such as continental parsley, rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage and dill, to the breadcrumb mixture. You could also use dried herbs.

4. Add finely grated lemon, lime or orange rind to the breadcrumb mixture. As a guide, lemon rind works well with lamb, veal, chicken and seafood; lime rind is a good match for chicken and seafood; while orange rind is delicious with pork and veal.

5. Instead of breadcrumbs, coat the food with other dried ingredients, such as rolled oats, cornflake crumbs, crushed corn chips, polenta (cornmeal) or cooked couscous.