5 Breads Perfect For Any Dish

When you’re creating a work of art in the kitchen, it can be difficult to find what pairs best with the flavor profiles you have created. Bread is soft, warm and a delightful way to take your flavor profiles of your dish to the next level. It doesn’t have to be hard. Society19 is here to help you pair the perfect bread for your next masterpiece. Here are 5 breads perfect for any dish.

This bread is a great go to for any dinner staple and pairing.

1. Sourdough

When you’re looking for that rustic and homely feel for your next dinner, sourdough is your go to bread. Sourdough is highly absorbent, making it the perfect flavor sponge for dishes that have a little extra sauce to give or soups. Sourdough, indicated in the name, is a bread that has a soft sour aftertaste and a soft white fluffy texture, making it perfect to pair with just about anything. In addition, this bread holds up well under pressure and sauce and is perfect for making appetizers such as crostinis or grilled cheese with a soup. In addition, this bread is perfect for when you need that fast and easy bread bowl to save the day, perfect for a hot chowder or stew. When you need a highly versatile bread for all your side dish needs, this bread is a solid classic you can always count on. 

This bread is nutty and sweet, perfect for adding some flavor to your pairing.

2. Rye Bread

While the flavors of this bread are a little more complex than the sourdough counterpart, this bread is well worth the pairing. And since rye is slightly more complex in flavor, having almost a nutty crunch among the grain, if you pair it correctly, the rewards are numerous. Rye is great for offsetting a rich dish. For instance a rich steak or heavy meat that otherwise would be too rich on it’s own, rye offers that sense of fresh nuttiness that makes your dish have a deep earth tone. Note, if you also have a sauce, this bread will be out of this world, allowing for a deep soak up of rich flavor in every bite. And unlike sourdough, the density of this bread is slightly thicker than that of sourdough, making it a perfect stiff bread for bread bowls, although it is not as malleable  as sourdough. This bread is perfect for a soft smear of butter, working with the soft fats of the butter and complimenting the already naturally sweet nutty flavor that exists within the grains.When you want a solid bread staple that goes well with rich flavor, try some rye for your next bread. 

When you need a stand alone star, this bread is a go to.

3. Focaccia Bread

This bread is the king of classic and complex. This personal favorite is perfect for appetizers and is to die for when on a panini. Rosemary garlic focaccia bread has such sweet complex flavors that work perfect as a lightly toasted appetizer paired with a soft creamy cheese or paired with a light panini. Because of it’s rosemary and garlic components, it’s one of the only breads that pair perfectly on it’s own with sun dried tomatoes or olive oil.  This bread is definitely a stand alone star and will never disappoint for a sophisticated brunch or rustic dinner. This bread is best toasted in my personal opinion. Serving it warm brings out those sweet aromatics of rosemary and garlic that are unlike any other. You can even lightly salt this bread and warm it in the oven to create a soft butter snack. Note, that this bread does pair better with lighter proteins since this bread already has natural richness to it’s flavor profile. It is best paired with rustic veggies or light proteins. 

This is a perfect bread for any sandwich or paring occasion.

4. Ciabatta Bread

Do you want a bread that compliments any flavors and acts as a blank canvas for any flavor? Ciabatta is your bread. When you’re looking to make little appetizers, or something that pairs with a deep rich flavor, ciabatta bread is perfect for any occasion. I personally love this bread for taking sandwiches to the next level. This is perfect for replacement for tired old sandwich bread and takes any sandwich to the next level. Note, most paninis that you see in restaurants and cafes use ciabatta as a bread because it is so neutral and compliments any flavors that you put it with. I personally love making pesto chicken paninis with this bread. Because this is one of the few breads that naturally paris well with anything, including the complex flavors of pesto. With some sun-dried tomatoes and soft chicken breast, this bread makes for a heavenly decadent chicken and pesto panini unlike any other. Although the one drawback to this bread is that it can’t be molded into various shapes and sizes like the sourdough, but has the same versatile use as sourdough. In addition, it is also slightly more expensive than sourdough because of it’s grain quality and ability to stay neutral to any dish. Yet when you’re looking for a way to up your dish and don’t know how, ciabatta is always a safe bet. 

This bread is special in the sense that it can make a pocket for your next meal.

5. Pita Bread

This bread takes some level of skill to incorporate in a dish and is not as easy to pair as other breads listed on above. If you do not pair this bread correctly, it can taste like dry sandpaper in your mouth. Pita is a naturally coarse grained bread that makes it perfect for absorbing moisture and flavor. Hummus is the natural combination but did you know that some uses for pita include stuffing a pita bread pocket with a thick stew, or filling making it a beautiful pita pocket? Other ingredients such as wraps work great for pita bread as well. As the flavor is light, airy and neutral. When you’re looking for a sweet breaded pocket or on the go snack, pita bread is a  must try. 

When you’re looking to pair bread with your next dish, it can be almost impossible to figure out where to start. Yet with this bread list, pairing your next bread dish will be made easy.