Savory French toast - Easy salty breakfast made with bread, eggs and milk, flavored with garlic powder, parmesan cheese and herbs.

Savory french toast on a white plate, garnished with chives, herb butter and hot honey

Why this recipe works

1. Quick breakfast with easy everyday ingredients.
2. Perfect way to use up stale bread to make a filling breakfast.

Cheesy, smoky, savory breakfast or brunch recipe. A perfect breakfast and brunch option when when you don't want a sweet breakfast and a boiled egg is just not cutting it anymore!

A twist on the classic sweet French toast. For the first 15 years of life, I didn't know that French toast is usually sweet. My mom always made the savory version of it with chilies and cilantro, served with ketchup.

I have two more French toast recipes on the website - brioche French toast casserole and sourdough French toast.

But if salty breakfasts is your jam, we have also been obsessing over burrata hot honey toast lately. You must try it!

Ingredients

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this savory French toast recipe.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Bread - You can use any kind of bread that you have on hand. Brioche and milk breads cannot be soaked for long. Sour dough and French bread works very well but needs a minimum 10 minute soak.

The first three ingredients -bread ,egg & milk are the basic French toast ingredients. You can switch up the rest to make endless variations.

Cheese - I have used parmesan cheese but you can choose to skip this.

Herbs - Fresh herbs are nice but dried herbs work very well too. You can use Italian seasoning or mixed herbs too.

Butter - You can use oil or butter. I like to top my French toast with some homemade roasted garlic compound butter. It's a flavor bomb!

Garlic Powder - Love using garlic powder in recipes. It's such a convenient pantry ingredient that adds instant garlic flavor.

Smoked paprika - I love the smokiness this adds. You can use regular ground chili or black pepper.

Tip

Instead of just regular butter, top the French toast with some homemade herb butter or hot honey sauce.

How to make Savory French Toast

The recipe is quite simple. You can add flavors and switch it up as per your taste.

Step 1: Make the custard & soak the bread

Use a flat dish so you can soak the bread in a single layer without folding it. If you are cooking for more than one person, use a baking sheet. Whisk together egg, milk, salt, chili, parmesan cheese and herbs.

Soak the bread in the spicy egg mixture. Flip the bread midway.

Sourdough bread will need at least 5 minutes on each side. Softer white flour breads will need lesser, barely 20 seconds per side.

Milk, Egg, garlic powder, paprika and herbs in a shallow square dish.

Whisked Milk, Egg, garlic powder, paprika and herbs in a shallow square dish.

Step 2: Cook the French toast

Heat a well seasoned cast iron or a nonstick pan on medium heat. Add a teaspoon of butter and swirl it around.

Place the soaked bread and cook till it turns golden brown. Flip and repeat on the other side.

White bread inside a square dish with savory custard

Savory french toast on a white plate, garnished with chives, herb butter and hot honey, with coffee on the side.

Variations

We love making all kinds of homemade French toasts.

Christmas special- overnight baked brioche French toast casserole. It's perfect when you have to feed a crowd! Another holiday favorite it making nutella babka bread.

High Protein French Toast- Use three egg whites instead of 1 whole egg.

Sourdough French toast- Sweet ,outrageously delicious French toast made with leftover sour dough bread.