French Toast
French toast, sometimes referred to as "eggy bread" in the United Kingdom, is a common breakfast or dessert item made by frying a piece of bread soaked in an egg batter. French toast was developed as a way to use day-old stale bread. The literal translation of pain perdu is lost bread, referring to old or stale bread. When lacking stale bread, toasting your bread lightly will help it absorb more of the egg and milk batter.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 22 min
- Total
- 1 hr 52 min
- Servings
- As written in source
- Difficulty
- Advanced
Timings are approximate — worked out from the method, not measured in a test kitchen.
Ingredients
Quantities are retained as written by the source and do not scale automatically. Tap an ingredient to check it off as you go.
Cooking instructions
Procedure
Whisk the eggs, milk, and optional ingredients in a bowl until fully combined and no streaks of egg white remain.
Procedure
Heat up a frying pan, skillet, or griddle to medium-low heat.
Procedure
Grease the pan with butter, margarine, or cooking spray.
Procedure
Soak each side of the bread in the egg mixture only until it is coated and has absorbed a little of the mixture. (See the Notes below for which breads work best.)
Procedure
Make sure the bread is not falling apart. Soft breads need only a quick dip; sturdier breads can soak a few seconds longer.
Procedure
Cook, turning once, until both sides of the bread are browned and the inside is cooked through.
Procedure
Serve on plates, with toppings as desired.
Notes, tips, and variations
The goal is to get both sides of the French toast nicely browned, while making sure the center is cooked. Using excessive heat could scorch the outside of the toast while leaving the inside undercooked.
Notes, tips, and variations
If making a small batch, soak the two slices until almost all of the mixture has been absorbed. If the bowl is small, place the two slices on top of each other, and keep switching and flipping them, so that all four sides will absorb the mixture.
Notes, tips, and variations
The cooking process is too short to use most raw spices, but some fresh herbs might be very tasty.
Notes, tips, and variations
If using sandwich bread, a plastic sandwich container may be used for the egg-milk mixture. This allows maximum use of the mixture, as the container is a good size and shape.
Notes, tips, and variations
Toast your bread before dipping it into the mix to create a solid base.
Notes, tips, and variations
The following types of bread are good used for French toast. Hard crust breads are recommended. Softer breads will create a soggy toast. Sourdough Challah Schiacciata Portuguese sweet bread ("Massa Suvada"). This bread will take your french toast to new heights. Whole-wheat raisin bread or schiacciata. King's Hawaiian Sweet Bread Panettone (bread with raisin, but may be too sweet for some) Brioche (weaved bread) Chinese bakery loaves of bread. Ask to get it cut thick or uncut.
Photo: jspatchwork · CC BY 2.0 · https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 · Photo source and licence
Wikibooks contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Adapted; quantities retained as written. · Original source
Read it through first
Skim all 13 steps before you start — it is the difference between cooking and firefighting.
Scale it
Use the quantities listed in the original recipe. Adjust them manually if making a different batch size.
Storage
Cool completely, then keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Reheating
Reheat gently with a splash of water in a covered pan, rather than blasting it, so nothing dries out.
Approximate values per serving. Worked out from the ingredient list — treat them as a guide, not a measurement.
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