Toast (food) facts for kids
Sliced bread, untoasted and toasted
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| Type | Bread |
|---|---|
| Serving temperature | Toasted |
| Main ingredients | Sliced bread |
Toast is sliced bread that has been browned by radiant heat. The browning is the result of a Maillard reaction altering the flavor of the bread and making it firmer. The firm surface is easier to spread toppings on and the warmth can help butter reach its melting point. Toasting is a common method of making stale bread more palatable. Bread is toasted using a toaster or a toaster oven. Toast may contain carcinogens (acrylamide) caused by the browning process.
Butter or margarine, and sweet toppings, such as jam or jelly, are commonly spread on toast. Regionally, savory spreads, such as peanut butter or yeast extract, may also be popular. Toast may accompany savory dishes such as soups or stews, or it can be topped with ingredients like eggs or baked beans to make a light meal. Toast is a common breakfast food. A sandwich may also use toasted bread.
Contents
Etymology and history
The word toast comes from the Latin torrere 'to burn'. One of the first references to toast in print is in a recipe for Oyle Soppys (flavoured onions stewed in a gallon of stale beer and a pint of oil) from 1430. In the 1400s and 1500s, toast was discarded or eaten after it was used as a flavoring for drinks. In the 1600s, toast was still thought of as something to be put into drinks. In his 1602 play The Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare gives Falstaff the line: "Go fetch me a quart of sack; put a toast in't." Toast has been used as an element of American haute cuisine since at least the 1850s. Toasting is a common method of making stale bread more palatable.
Preparation
Sliced bread is commonly used in modern preparations; some of these specifically market their suitability for toasting.
Toasters
In a modern home kitchen, toast is usually made in a special-purpose electrical appliance, a toaster. Sliced bread is placed into the slots on the top of the toaster, the desired degree of toasting is set, and a lever is pushed down to expose the bread to the heated elements. The toast is popped up when it is ready. Bread toasted in a conventional toaster can "sweat" when it is served (i.e. water collects on the surface of the cooled toast). This occurs because moisture in the bread becomes steam while being toasted due to heat and when cooled the steam condenses into water droplets on the surface of the bread.
It can also be toasted by a conveyor toaster, which device is often used in hotels, restaurants, and other food service locations. It works by having one heating element on the top and one on the bottom with a metal conveyor belt in the middle which carries the toast between the two heating elements. This allows toast to be made continuously, as more slices can be added at any time without waiting for previous ones to pop up.
Toaster ovens are special small appliances made for toasting bread or for heating small amounts of other foods.
Alternative preparations
Bread can also be toasted under a grill (or broiler), in an open oven, or lying on an oven rack. This "oven toast" is usually buttered before toasting. It can also be made by heating bread in a skillet or pan. Bread can also be toasted by holding it near, but not directly over, an open flame, such as a campfire or fireplace; special toasting utensils (e.g. toasting forks) are made for this purpose.
Consumption
Toast is most commonly eaten with butter or margarine spread over it, and may be served with preserves, spreads, or other toppings in addition to or instead of butter. Toast with jam or marmalade is popular. A few other condiments that can be enjoyed with toast are chocolate spread, cream cheese, and peanut butter. Yeast extracts such as Marmite in the UK, New Zealand and South Africa, and Vegemite in Australia are considered national traditions. Some sandwiches, such as the BLT, call for toast to be used rather than bread.
Toast is an important component of many breakfasts. In the United Kingdom, toast is part of a traditional breakfast: it may be incorporated in a full breakfast or eaten with baked beans. A dish popular there with children is eggs and soldiers. Strips of toast (the soldiers) are dipped into the runny yolk of a soft-boiled egg through a hole made in the top of the eggshell, and eaten.
Toast is also used in some traditional bland specialty diets for people with gastrointestinal problems such as diarrhea. This is because toasting breaks down the starch in the bread and makes it easier to digest.
In southern Sri Lanka, it is common for toast to be paired with a curry soup and mint tea. In Japan, people like to toast thick slices of bread. Toast became a staple dish in Japan after World War II, especially after it was introduced in school lunches throughout the country due to the shortage of rice. Thick slices of toasted bread are also eaten in regions of the US, where they are known as Texas toast. Street vendors in South Korea serve toast with a variety of toppings, usually fried eggs, vegetables and slices of meat, topped with sauces. Korean toast is to be eaten as a sandwich. In Southeast Asia, coconut jam is a popular spread for toast. Avocado toast is seen as a symbol of millennial culture.
By 2013, "artisanal toast" had become a significant food trend in upscale American cities like San Francisco, where some commentators decried the increasing number of restaurants and bakeries selling freshly made toast at what was perceived to be an unreasonably high price.
Other foods which are toasted
Cheese and marshmallows are also toasted by exposure to dry radiant heat. A toasted cheese sandwich features toasted cheese and toasted bread. Bagels, English muffins, Pop Tart pastries, and crumpets are foods that can also be toasted.
See also
In Spanish: Tostada para niños
