Garlic bread is one of the most popular sides to have with many types of dishes. You might not want to simply buy frozen garlic bread from the grocery store if you wish to have the best experience, though.
Making your own could be a very satisfying move to make, and making it is actually pretty simple.
However, you’re going to run into a bit of an issue if you don’t have an oven to use. Most people will use recipes that involve baking some garlic bread in an oven, but you can also cook it using alternative methods.
Read on to learn how to make garlic bread without an oven.
You Can’t Bake Bread Without an Oven
Before going any further, it’s important to note that you can’t bake your bread from scratch properly if you don’t have an oven to utilize.
You could potentially try to bake bread using some type of Dutch oven setup, but the results that you would get might be mixed at best. The methods that are going to be mentioned moving forward will involve you cutting up bread that you buy from the store.
You can purchase fresh loaves of bread from a bakery that you will be able to use to make some very tasty garlic bread. You’ll have a couple of methods that you can try out to get this to turn out well, too.
Keep reading and you’ll figure out exactly how you can make garlic bread without an oven.
Garlic Bread Skillet Recipe
The most popular and practical way to make garlic bread without an oven is to use a skillet. You can make a fairly large batch of it assuming that you have a skillet that is the right size. This is going to involve making a garlic and butter mixture that will make your bread turn out just right.
Below you’re going to get a step-by-step guide for how to make garlic bread using this method. The ingredients that you will need for things to turn out properly are one loaf of Italian bread, four tablespoons of salted butter, four cloves of garlic, and one half cup of parsley.
As long as you’re able to gather these ingredients, everything should turn out nicely.
Cut Your Loaf of Bread Into Slices
The first important step that you have to take is to cut your loaf of bread into slices. Ideally, you’re going to want to make thick slices of garlic bread that will cook up well in the skillet.
It’s probably going to be easier to cut the bread into thick slices if you use a serrated knife of some sort.
You probably have some steak knives or other types of serrated knives in your kitchen already. Get one that seems big enough to cut the bread without it being an issue.
Cut your loaf of bread up into even slices that are as thick as you would like them to be before continuing on.
Grate Your Garlic Cloves
Next, you’re going to need to grab the four cloves of garlic that you should already have available. It’s time to grate your garlic cloves so that they can be used to make a garlic and butter mixture.
Use whatever grating method you prefer to use in your kitchen before going to get your parsley.
After the garlic cloves have been grated, you’re going to need to chop your parsley up so that it can be used. This won’t take long to accomplish, but you should only chop the parsley leaves to get the best results.
Finish this up and you’ll be closer to having delicious garlic bread to enjoy.
Start Heating Your Pan
Start heating your pan up so that you can get it ready to make your garlic and butter mixture. Get the salted butter and start melting it in your skillet or pan.
Once the four tablespoons of butter have melted nicely for you, it’s going to be ready for you to add your grated garlic.
Go ahead and add your grated garlic to the pan so that it can start cooking. It should take about one minute for your grated garlic to cook when you’re using low heat.
It’s recommended to use low heat so that you don’t burn anything or make mistakes.
After that has finished up, you need to add your chopped parsley to your skillet or pan. Turn the heat off and just make sure that you stir things up nicely to get the recipe right.
If you used salted butter as suggested, then you won’t need to add salt to your mix or anything like that.
If you need to substitute normal butter for the salted butter, then you can add a pinch of salt to the recipe so that it tastes right. You don’t need to add too much salt, and it’s going to be best if you don’t go overboard.
This is why it’s so much easier to just use the salted butter when you’re making garlic bread like this.
Dip Your Bread
Now you can start dipping your bread slices in the garlic and butter mixture that you just cooked. You want to dip the bread slices well and then set them to the side for later.
It’s probably going to be easier to use a spatula or some type of butter knife to spread the mixture on the bread slices.
Your goal here is to get the parsley to be as evenly distributed on the bread slices as possible. It might take a bit of time to do this, but it certainly isn’t going to be hard.
Once your bread slices have been dipped up well enough, you’ll be able to move on to the final step of the process.
Cook Your Bread in the Skillet
Cooking the bread in the skillet is the final step that you need to complete. You want to place your bread slices with the butter side down in your skillet or pan. After this, you’re going to cook the bread slices for around one or two minutes using low heat.
Depending on your stove or heat source type that you’re using, it might take a little less time than that or a bit more.
Just go until the bread is lightly toasted and try not to cook it for too long or else it will end up burning. It’s going to be better for you to only cook one or two slices at a time so that you can pay attention and avoid making mistakes.
When you’re getting ready to put in new slices of bread to get them started, you should wipe the pan clean first. If you don’t do this, then stuck bits could cause your slices of bread to burn.
As long as you’re doing things as instructed, this process should turn out very well for you.
Other Options
Other options are mostly going to be similar to the method described above. If you don’t have access to a stove or skillet, then you could try to roast some bread over an open fire.
This is way harder to pull off without burning it, but people have done stuff like this at campsites for a long time.
You’d still need some type of pan so that you can make a garlic and butter mixture, though. If you don’t have a pan that you can heat up over a flame, then this isn’t going to work out as well as you’d like.
Some people do buy garlic butter from the store that they can just spread on slices of bread as well, so that could be an option if you don’t want to make things from scratch, so to speak.
Microwave
It’s also possible to make garlic bread in the microwave if you’re so inclined. This is mostly for those who are fine with having garlic bread that is bought from the frozen section of your grocery store.
If you just need to make the garlic bread to accompany a pasta dinner and your oven isn’t working, then your microwave should do just fine.
Follow the instructions on the package to ensure that your frozen garlic bread turns out fine in the microwave. It isn’t as fancy as making up some homemade garlic bread using the above methods, but it should turn out just fine anyway.
Many people prefer buying garlic bread frozen because it just saves time, but you can make your own decision about what you want to do.
Enjoy Your Garlic Bread
You now know what your options are when you want some garlic bread and you don’t have a working oven.
It’s going to be possible to make garlic bread so long as you have a heat source, a stove, or a microwave. You might find it more satisfying to go the route of making your own garlic bread or you could prefer frozen garlic bread.
Either way, garlic bread is a tasty treat that just makes sense as a side dish for pasta meals. If you want to make the perfect accompaniment to your next pasta dish, then don’t hesitate to make some.
Now that you know that an oven isn’t an absolute requirement, it shouldn’t be a big deal moving forward.
Sarah is the founder of Baking Kneads, LLC, a blog sharing guides, tips, and recipes for those learning how to bake. Growing up as the daughter of a baker, she spent much of her childhood learning the basics in a local bakery.