Yes, no matter what you do, home baked bread does go stale sooner than “store bought”. That is why it does not matter what bread baking group you read, one of the most commonly asked questions is how to keep it from going stale.
Caveat Lechtor:
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First the Reality Check: Most if not all Bread Bakers will tell you how wonderful it is to have bread that does not contain unnecessary chemicals. As often as not, the same folks will ask how to keep their bread from going stale. The answer is to add chemicals (and yes even vinegar as so say will help) – in other words you cannot have it both ways. And certainly unless you accept this reality, you honestly might be happier buying store brand white bread.
Having accepted this reality, based on my nearly 60 years of bread making, my primary solution is to bake smaller loaves and to do so more often. I cannot begin to tell you how many different ideas Ihave tried with varying degrees of success. If you have something else that works for you, I am happy for you. But for me and likely among the top reasons I am so very happy to have found my KBS MBF-041 since its Tube Pan makes 1 lb loaves work really well for just us two for either sandwich, toast or dessert type breads.
Consider using these plastic bread bags for “breaking down” things like value packs of protein and for bread storage. This “buy” has average been sufficient for about about a 24 month supply. Their size (approx 11 x 12 inch) works well for my 1 and 1.5 lb loaves of bread. Twist tightly and use twist ties to seal for storage in refrigerator or, to place inside a freezer zip loc. Why inside a second plastic bag? Because I reuse the freezer bags – more about that another time. Sometimes just for bread or meal sized portion and some times for all the ingredients for a particular recipe with each ingredient in its own “flap” type sandwich bag. My greenish compromise.
The most common reply is to wait for it to cool completely (and to that I would add – that means several hours on the counter – which on those rare occasions when I plan to freeze bread like objects) Place in a plastic bag and let it get really cold (overnight) in the Refrigerator. Then Slice and place in sandwich bags with a “burger wax paper” between the slices.
I usually put two slices per bag in case of a grill cheese emergency, with a single slice of was paper between the bread, and another to separate the bread from the cheese (also in the sandwich bag)
Another of my “compromises” is the use of the least expensive fold and close type sandwich bags. Usually the best price is to keep an eye on your local stupid markets store brand in 300 ct boxes. Note, I do not reuse for food storage.
With my system for reusing larger gallon sized freezer zipper bags, there is no need to use the triple the price and the plastic zipper type for the individual sandwiches. (end of earth day quasi lecture) So you can “see” what I mean, If you are the type to go for bulk buying (as with all things Amazon) often at a higher price – this is a link to one of the better priced bulk buys. Note once again, check you local stupid market for the best price.
I found this note from an article, but forgot to note where.
My apology to the author.
The article s/he was discussing “store brought” not
necessarily home baked. I remember thinking that it
perfectly matches my “experience”
“Breads with higher percentages of whole grains tend to
stay fresh for longer, too. And finally, a bread that’s
been naturally leavened (sourdough) will keep longer
than a bread made with yeast. ”