How do you Toast Bread in a Pan Without Butter

Cyd Converse

How do you toast bread in a pan without butter? We've got the answer - plus a couple more suggestions for making toast without a toaster!

How do you toast bread in a pan without butter?

You may be wondering if it's even possible - after all, most websites will tell you that if you're looking for a way to toast bread that doesn't involve using an electric toaster, then cooking it in a pan with a pat of butter is the way to go.

Simple White Bread Photo

But this may not be quite what you're looking for!

If you put butter in the pan, you are essentially frying the bread instead of toasting it.

Using butter changes the flavor of the bread too - if you like butter, then that might not be a problem. But if you don't, then it's not really something you'll want to be adding in there. Not to mention, of course, that using butter will add extra calories to your toast!

The good news is that you have a couple of options here. 

The first is to replace the butter with olive oil. Of course, this won't be suitable if you're trying to avoid altering the flavour of the toast, or the extra calories.

Spelt Bread Picture

The second option is to simply not put any butter into your pan at all - it's quite possible to toast your bread in a pan just as it is! It doesn't usually stick to the pan, but just to be on the safe side use a seasoned, cast iron skillet or a non-stick pan. Just pop in your slice of bread and cook it for between one to two minutes per side, until it crisps up and turns your preferred shade of golden brown!

Toasting bread in a pan may even be better than using a toaster!

We've all gotten so used to our gadgets that it's easy to forget that our ancestors managed perfectly well without them!

A toaster is absolutely NOT an essential piece of kitchen equpment. In fact, if your space is limited, removing the toaster from the kitchen counter may be one of the first things you could do to give yourself more room.

Toast image

Cooking toast in a pan is easy and - if you have gas burners - it's actually a lot cheaper than using an electric toaster. 

But what if you need to cook multiple slices of toast at the same time? Well, you can do that too!

The easiest way is to cook your toast in the oven instead of in a pan. After all, you can get more slices of bread on to a baking sheet that you can fit into a 4-slice toaster! You can even toast frozen bread in the oven - handy if you've forgotten to thaw any ahead of time!

Banana Bread Pic

Now that you've discovered how to toast bread in a pan without butter, why not check out our article all about how to keep toast crispy? This is ideal if you're preparing toast for a crowd, or planning to use it later in a toasted sandwich.

Or check out our related articles - how to toast bread without a toaster and how to toast bread on a gas stove.

Cyd is a native of Upstate New York, born to a family of women who love to cook and host parties. She shares her love of all things food, home and entertaining on her blog, The Sweetest Occasion and on Instagram.

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