Basic Breadcrumbs

Ingredients

your favourite gluten free bread, stale or toasted
salt and pepper (or seasoned salt) (~1 tsp total per 1 cup of finished crumbs)

Method

1. Rip your stale or toasted bread into chunks and add to a blender or food processor
2. Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper (or seasoned salt) in with the breadcrumbs (~1/8 tsp per slice)
3. Pulse until the bread crumbs are your desired size
4. Use right away for your recipe calling for basic breadcrumbs – leftovers should be kept in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer, as they are not made with shelf-stable, dehydrated ingredients.

Notes:

1. If toasting your bread, allow it to cool completely after toasting to ensure that there is no steam going into your blender. Steam will make the crumbs clump together and make it more difficult to use later for whatever dish your are making.
2. If you have some larger chunks of crumbs and do not wish to pulse the smaller crumbs further, you can always pass them through a strainer (not a mesh sieve) to collect the most uniform crumbs. The larger ones can always be added back to your blender afterwards and broken down further.

Italian Style Breadcrumbs

Ingredients

1 cup Basic Breadcrumbs (above recipe, or store-bought)
1/2 tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic powder

Method

1. Make basic breadcrumbs (with salt and pepper, or seasoned salt)
2. Mix in parsley, basil, oregano, and garlic powder
3. Use immediately in your recipe calling for Italian breadcrumbs – leftovers should be kept in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer, as they are not made with shelf-stable, dehydrated ingredients.

Tortilla Chip Crumbs

Ingredients

corn tortilla chips (any colour, and any flavour!)

Method

1. Option 1: add chips to a blender or food processor, and pulse until crumbs reach an even consistency
2. Option 2: add chips to a clean, reusable zip bag or a mortar. Bash the chips until they are your desired size/consistency
3. Add additional seasonings if desired, tasting as you go (as corn chips are often already seasoned)

Notes:

1. I don’t recommend using plastic bags for Option 2, as the sharp chips can puncture the bag, and either make a mess or rip bits of plastic into the crumb mix
2. If using multicoloured chips, you can pulse or bash them all together at the same time for your final product – since the chip crumbs are typically a bit larger, the colours stay separated anyways.
3. You can always opt for flavoured corn chips if they make sense for your recipe (ex. lime flavoured chips). This can also take out additional steps and ingredients for you to buy!

Cracker Crumbs

Ingredients

gluten free crackers of choice*

Method

1. Option 1 – Fine Crumbs: add cracker to a blender or food processor, and pulse until crumbs reach an even consistency
2. Option 2 – Rustic Crumbs: add crackers to a clean, reusable zip bag or a mortar. Bash the crackers until they are your desired size/consistency
3. Add additional seasonings if desired, tasting as you go (as crackers are often already seasoned)

Notes:

1. *I would stay away from crackers that have dried fruit or other ingredients that contain more moisture. These ingredients can not only clump up your crumbs, but also tend to burn when cooked in recipes calling for the breadcrumbs.
2. Cracker crumbs are a great way to add more variety to your recipes. There are many flavours, including multigrain varieties, to choose from – and I would include gluten free pretzel sticks in this category 😉

Rice Krispies Crumbs

Ingredients

Rice Krispies (brown rice version is certified gluten free!)**

Method

1. Add Rice Krispies to a clean, reusable zip bag or a mortar. Crush lightly leaving some larger pieces, otherwise it will all turn to powder
2. Use in any recipe calling for crispy/puffed rice crumbs or in place of basic bread crumbs

Notes:

1. **You do not need to go for the name brand of crispy rice cereal! If there is another version that is within your budget and meets your dietary needs, always opt for what you can get.
2. Other low sweetness cereals are also great as a crumb coating. Corn flakes (not frosted) are amazing to add flaky crispiness.
3. You can often find sweet flavoured crispy rice cereal, like chocolate and cinnamon sugar. These would be great for sweet recipes calling for a crumb topping or coating!