What is footlong bread?

Footlong bread is a long 6” bread loaf prepared using a mixture of flour, yeast, sugar, oil, salt and water along with some additives to make them more fluffy and soft from centre and crisp from outside. These footlongs are easily available in the market and also can be made at home. They are also prepared in varieties like oats honey footlong, multigrain footlong, etc. and also some flavours can be added like pepper and cheese, paprika etc. these footlongs have standard diameter and length.

• Ensure that the crust is crisp and thin.
• Rub your fingers through the crust; it will make a crisp sound, which is a test for freshness.
• For best results, purchase from a bakery you trust.

Culinary Uses of footlong bread in Indian Cooking

• Often used to create sandwiches like subways.
• Slices are cut from a longer baguette loaf and used to make sandwiches. The sandwiches can be open sandwiches with butter and garlic spread and toppings of your choice.
• You could also serve the sliced footlongs with an assortment of cheeses, pâté (pastes), etc.

• Since it is prepared with basic ingredients like flour, yeast, salt, oil and water, it is best consumed the same day it is prepared.
• Leftover footlong bread can be stored in paper bags/ foil and consumed the next day.

Footlong bread is made of maida which is processed and is thus high in carbohydrates and hence a good source of energy. However, being high on glycemic index scale, it is not advised for people with obesity and diabetes. Further, it is devoid of other essential nutrients as they are lost in the processing of maida. Switching from white bread to other alternatives of whole wheat bread, multigrain bread or almond bread is a wise choice.