On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 1027

Stalingproceedsmostrapidlyattemperatures
just above freezing, and very slowly below
freezing. In one experiment, bread stored in
therefrigeratorat46ºF/7ºCstaledasmuchin
onedayasbreadheldat86ºF/30ºCdidinsix
days.Ifyou’regoingtousebreadinadayor
two, then store it at room temperature in a
breadbox or paper bag, which reduces
moisture loss while allowing the crust to
remain somewhat crisp. If you need to keep
bread for several days or more, then wrap it
wellinplasticorfoilandfreezeit.Refrigerate
bread (well wrapped) only if you’re going to
toastorotherwisereheatit.
Bread Spoilage Compared to many foods,
breadcontainsrelativelylittlewater,andsoit
often dries out before it becomes infected by
spoilage microbes. Keeping bread at room
temperature in a plastic bag allows moisture
from the staling starch granules to collect on
thebreadsurfacesandencouragesthegrowth


of potentially toxic molds, especially bluegreen species ofAspergillus andPenicillium,
gray-whiteMucor species, and redMonilia
sitophila.
TheVirtuesofStaleBread
Cookshavelongknownthatstalebreadis
averyusefulingredientinitsownright.It
ismorerobustthanfreshbread,andretains
its sponge-like structure in wet

preparations that would cause fresh bread
todisintegrate,suchdishesasbreadsalads,
breadpuddings,andpainperdu. Similarly,
bread crumbs retain their individual
identity when wetted, and can serve as
tenderbindingagentinstuffings,panades,
andbreadingsforfrying.Thesourceofdry
bread’s structural integrity is its starch.
Whenitretrogrades,itformssomeregions
that are extremely ordered and stable and
that hold the rest of the starch network
stronglytogether(p.458).