How To Reheat Garlic Bread – I Test 6 Methods [Pics]

This article was updated on 1st July 2023 for clarity and to incorporate new insights.

Rather than settling for vague and often poor advice online, I decided to test six different ways to reheat garlic bread to find out which one rules supreme. If you’re in a rush, here’s the short version.

The best way to reheat garlic bread is in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C) and wrap the garlic bread in foil. If the slices are quite dry, sprinkle some water over them. Reheat for 10-15 minutes. For crispy garlic bread, remove the foil for the final few minutes.

How I tested reheating garlic bread

One morning, I bought a baguette from my local bakery, slathered it in garlic butter, and cooked it. I added some cheese to the end of one loaf so I could have some cheesy garlic bread to experiment on too. (I’m a genius, right?).

Then I tested 6 different ways of reheating it:

• Oven: Traditional method that’s perfect for whole loaves.
• Frying pan: Great for individual slices.
• Microwave: Very quick, but mediocre results.
• Stove: Bit fiddly, but nice results.
• Air fryer: Perfect if you want a crispy texture.
• Toaster: You’ll need toaster bags.

After reheating the garlic bread, I tasted it and made notes on how flavorsome it was, as well as how soft the bread was and how crisp the crust was.

How to reheat garlic bread in the oven

Time: 5-15 minutes
Rating: 8/10

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Sprinkle some water on the garlic bread if it’s dried out (optional).
3. Wrap your garlic bread in foil to protect the crust from burning.
4. Heat for 5-15 minutes, depending on the size of the garlic bread. Single slices will only need 5 minutes while a whole loaf might need closer to 20 minutes.
5. If you prefer a crispy texture, remove the foil for the last 2-3 minutes of cooking.

I left one half of my garlic bread covered for the whole time and I took the foil off the other half for the last 2 minutes of cooking. The uncovered half was definitely crisper, which I preferred.

If your garlic bread is feeling particularly stale, sprinkling it with a generous amount of water before you put it in the oven will help create steam and rehydrate your bread. When you add water, make sure to keep the foil loose rather than tight so that the steam has an escape route. If you don’t let the steam escape, your bread will end up soggy. 

A trick for really stale garlic bread is to put it in the oven in a wet paper bag (sounds bonkers I know). But it works a treat. The water re-introduces moisture into the bread. And when the bag dries, the outside crisps up nicely.

To help revitalize the flavors of the garlic bread brush it with some fresh garlic butter before serving. Yum!

Results: This was my favorite method, the inside of the bread was soft and moist but not soggy, and the crust retained some bite. But if you’re only reheating a few slices for yourself, it’s probably not worth heating up the whole oven and waiting 10 minutes (unless you have a toaster oven).

How to reheat garlic bread by frying

Time: 2-4 minutes
Rating: 7/10

1. Cut the garlic bread into slices.
2. Heat a non-stick skillet on medium-high heat.
3. Optional: lightly butter or oil the slices of garlic bread for an extra decadent treat.
4. Place the garlic bread cut side down in the pan and heat for 1-2 minutes on each side.

Extra oil/butter is optional here, and I chose to leave it out. My thinking was that there’s already a lot of butter in the bread and this would be enough to keep the texture moist and fluffy.

If you do choose to add extra oil or butter to the pan, you can also fry up some garlic or chili to add more flavor. And if you’re feeling extra indulgent, try frying the garlic bread in bacon grease. It’s not healthy, but it will be one of the best things you’ve ever tasted.

Results: I was initially put off by the thought of frying the garlic bread but it turned out pretty good. The bread was crispy and had a nice bite to it. The only downside was that it was a bit greasier than the other methods.

How to reheat garlic bread in the microwave

Time: 10-30 seconds
Rating: 3/10

1. Cut your garlic bread into slices and place 2-3 slices in the microwave.
2. Place a cup of water next to the garlic bread slices.
3. Microwave the garlic bread in 10-second intervals on full power for up to 30 seconds.
4. Eat immediately.

30 seconds might feel short, but don’t put the bread in for longer than that. You only want to warm the bread. If you heat it until it’s piping hot, you’ve gone too far and the bread will be rock hard.

To settle the debate of using a damp paper towel vs a cup of water in the microwave, I tested it out. I preferred the cup of water for garlic bread because I thought the paper towel left the bread too soggy.

You need to eat the bread as soon as it comes out of the microwave. If you leave it to cool, it will turn into literal cardboard. And I’m not joking.

Results: I wasn’t a fan of the microwave (if I haven’t already made that clear). The inside of the bread went mushy and disintegrated in my mouth rather than me needing to chew it. You also wouldn’t have noticed there was a crust, it was the same texture as the bread.

Other reheating methods to consider

Frying, the oven, and the microwave are the most common and accessible ways to reheat garlic bread. But they’re not the only options. Here are some more methods that can work in specific situations.

How to reheat garlic bread on the stove

Wrap your leftover garlic bread in foil and find a pan that’s big enough to hold your wrapped garlic bread without leaving too much empty space. Put the wrapped garlic bread in the pan and heat it on low heat for 10-15 minutes.

You’re essentially turning the pan into a mini oven here.

This method works best for individual slices of bread or small sections of a loaf. I wouldn’t recommend it for whole loaves. Bigger loaves will take too long to heat and won’t heat evenly.

The pan size and low heat also help ensure even heating. Too big of a pan, and the heat will be too spread out. Too high of a heat, and the bottom of your garlic bread will heat much faster than the top.

Results: This method gave decent results, but it’s kind of fiddly. The bread kept its texture, but the crust wasn’t super crunchy so I’d only consider it if your oven is busy.

How to reheat garlic bread in an air fryer

If you have an air fryer and like crispy garlic bread, this is the method for you.

Set the air fryer to 350°F (180°C) and place slices of garlic bread in a single layer in the basket. Heat them for 4-5 minutes. You don’t want to leave the garlic bread in the air fryer for too long or you risk it drying out.

To prevent too much smokiness from the melted butter, add a few tablespoons of water to the bottom of your air fryer basket. This will catch any butter drips and stop them from smoking out your kitchen.

Results: This method produced the crispiest garlic bread, but it was also a little dry. If your garlic bread is fresh and it only needs a quick refresh, the air fryer will work well. But if you’ve got few-day-old garlic bread that needs some love, pick a different method.

How to reheat garlic bread in a toaster

If you want to reheat your garlic bread in the toaster, you’ll need some toaster bags to catch any drips and stop smoking. Put slices of garlic bread inside a toaster bag and toast them for 2 minutes. It’s that simple!

If you don’t have any toaster bags, you can fashion one yourself out of parchment paper. But once you have the bags, you can use them for things like chicken nuggets, pizza slices, and leftover toasties.

Results: I wasn’t that impressed with the toaster because there was no way to rehydrate the bread. But if you’re in an office and the only appliance available to you is a toaster, it will work!

Uses for stale garlic bread

Have you left your garlic bread out a little too long and think it’s gone past the point of saving? Think again! Here are some great uses for overly stale garlic bread, or garlic bread you don’t fancy eating plain.

• Make croutons. Garlic croutons are the perfect addition to Caesar salad.
• Make crostinis. Garlic crostini with tomatoes on… delicious.
• Make breadcrumbs. You can grate the bread or crush it with a rolling pin to get some fancy seasoned breadcrumbs.
• Make savory bread pudding. Bread pudding is traditionally a dessert, but more and more savory recipes are popping up like this caramelized onion and garlic bread pudding from FineCooking. 
• Make garlicky French toast. Perfect for breakfast with some pesto.
• Use it as a pie topping. This one’s a little out there, but when I came across this recipe for garlic bread turkey pot pie, I couldn’t leave it out.

How to store garlic bread

To store leftover garlic bread, let it cool to room temperature before wrapping it in foil, plastic wrap, or a paper bag. Keep it at room temperature for 3-4 days. Never put garlic bread in the fridge! The fridge will accelerate the staling process, and you’ll end up with hard, chewy bread.

Cooling the bread to room temperature first makes sure there won’t be any condensation buildup in the wrapping, which can make the crust soggy.

I like keeping my garlic bread in a paper bag because it allows some airflow and keeps the crust crunchy. But it does stale faster than if you used something airtight like plastic. The downside to plastic wrap or foil is that the crust goes a bit soft.

If you want the garlic bread to last longer than a few days, you can freeze it.

How to freeze garlic bread

To freeze a loaf of garlic bread, wrap it tightly in a double layer of foil and place it directly in the freezer for up to 3 months. If you have slices, flash-freeze them on a baking tray before putting them in a freezer bag. This will stop them from sticking together.

To flash freeze, lay the slices out on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and place them in the freezer for 30-60 minutes. Once the garlic bread is semi-frozen, you can put all the slices in a freezer bag, remove as much air as possible, and put them back in the freezer without worrying about them sticking together.

If you don’t want to flash-freeze the slices, you can separate them with parchment paper before wrapping them in foil.

How to Reheat Garlic Bread [Tested Methods]

Rather than settling for vague and often poor advice online, I decided to test six methods of reheating garlic bread to find out which one rules supreme.

4.80 from 5 votes

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Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: cheesy garlic bread, garlic bread

Prep Time: 2 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 1 person

Calories: 206kcal

Equipment

• Foil

Ingredients

• 1 portion garlic bread
• 1 sprinkle water optional

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C).
• Sprinkle some water on the garlic bread if it’s dried out (optional).
• Wrap your garlic bread in foil. The foil protects the crust from burning.
• Heat for 5-15 minutes depending on the size of the garlic bread. Single slices will only need 5 minutes, while a whole loaf will need closer to 15 minutes.
• If you prefer a crispy texture, remove the foil for the last 2-3 minutes of cooking.

Nutrition

Serving: 59g | Calories: 206kcal