How To Reheat A Croissant: The Best 5 Methods to Keep It Flaky

What are your favorite breakfast items? Pancakes, crepes, toast, or croissants? We love a warm flaky, buttery croissant in the morning. The first bite feels like biting into a warm cloud.

Croissant is a French pastry made with croissant dough and butter. The layers of butter give the croissant its flakiness, but still, it remains warm and soft on the inside. Some croissants are even filled with custard.

Moreover, you can enjoy croissants with jam or butter or both if you’re feeling a little adventurous. With so many options, your heart desires to get more croissants than you could eat. Later you are left with leftover croissants that you couldn’t eat. It happens to us also.

We have explained everything from reheating to storing to help you out of this croissant dilemma. Just go through it to know how to reheat a croissant without losing its flakiness.

4 Methods with Steps to Reheating Croissants

Croissants don’t take much time or make a mess when reheating in the oven, microwave, air fryer, or other kitchen appliances. These qualities make it an easy snack whenever you are feeling hungry.

The following methods are for heating room-temperature croissants, but no worries, we also have ways to reheat frozen croissants. So, let’s move on to the reheating process of croissants.

How to Heat Up a Croissant in the Oven?

Croissants are popular and a treat for their flaky texture, but you can easily ruin the flakiness when reheating improperly. Your oven is the best method to reheat croissants so that their texture and flavor stay the same.

Moreover, your croissants get heated evenly, and the butter between the layers doesn’t start melting. The oven also takes only a couple of minutes to reheat, and there is almost zero mess to clean.

Here are the reheating instructions:

Step 1: Preheat the oven for 10 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2: Place a baking sheet on a baking tray.

Step 3: Put the croissants onto the baking tray.

Step 4: Warm up the croissants for 3 to 4 minutes.

Step 5: Take them out, add some butter on top, and enjoy.

How to Heat Up Croissants in the Toaster Oven?

A toaster oven gives excellent results for reheating croissants. It is similar to a standard oven, and almost all the instructions are the same.

But the downside is you can only heat one croissant (depending on the size) in the toaster oven, whereas you can heat more in the oven. It also takes a couple more minutes to reheat in the toaster oven.

Here are the reheating instructions:

Step 1: Preheat the toaster oven for 5 minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2: Place a baking sheet on the toaster oven pan.

Step 3: Put the croissant on the baking sheet.

Step 4: Reheat for 5 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 5: Bake them for an extra 10 minutes and take them out.

Step 6: Enjoy it warm.

How to Warm a Croissant on the Stovetop?

Here’s something you didn’t know! You can reheat croissants on the stovetop, and it works amazingly. Does it seem impossible to you? Well, it also seemed impossible to us until we tried it. So, don’t judge it until you try it.

All you need is a skillet or a non-stick pan, and you are all set to warm up any type of food on the stove, such as meat, bread, sandwich, pastry, etc., on the stove.

Here are the reheating instructions:

Step 1: Use a bread knife to cut the croissant in half.

Step 2: Put your skillet on the stove at medium heat.

Step 3: Put some butter on the skillet and melt it completely. You can also use oil if you want, but it won’t have the same flavor.

Step 4: When the butter melts completely, put both halves of the croissants face down on the pan.

Step 5: Reheat the croissants for 2 to 3 minutes or until they become soft.

Step 6: Take them off and serve them hot.

How to Warm a Croissant in the Microwave?

The microwave is fast, but it can’t hold onto the freshness of the croissant. The croissant reheated in the microwave won’t taste like freshly baked ones. But, it will do its job of heating it thoroughly.

However, the butter in the croissant layers will melt, leaving it greasy without the signature flaky shell. But, when we feel lazy, microwaves are our go-to appliance.

Here are the reheating instructions:

Step 1: Place your croissant on a microwave-safe plate.

Step 2: Cover the croissant with a damp paper towel to help retain moisture.

Step 3: Heat it for 25 to 30 seconds on medium power.

Step 4: Check to see if it is warm. If not, reheat it again for 10 seconds.

Step 5: Take it out and eat it immediately because it will be unimaginably dry after it cools down.

How to Reheat Frozen Croissants?

Frozen croissants can last longer in the freezer. Sometimes, they still taste fresh; sometimes, it all goes downhill after reheating. But, to help you in your quest to reheat frozen croissants, we have two methods that will work great.

Let’s not waste any more time and jump into it.

1. Reheating Frozen Croissants in an Air Fryer 

Air fryers are great for cooking or reheating many food items. It also works excellently to reheat frozen croissants, but there is the possibility of overcooking, leading to dryness.

Just follow our instructions properly, and you can avoid mishaps.

Step 1: Thaw your frozen croissant beforehand. Wrap the croissant with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for a day.

Step 2: Preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 250 degrees Fahrenheit. The lower the temperature, the less risk of overcooking.

Step 3: Place a baking sheet or parchment paper in the air fryer basket.

Step 4: Place the croissant in the basket.

Step 5: Heat the croissant for only a minute. Lesser time will ensure to keep your croissant from overcooking.

Step 6: Take it out and enjoy it hot.

2. Reheating Frozen Croissants in Oven

The oven is your best kitchen appliance for reheating croissants, frozen or unfrozen. It evenly heats up the food and maintains the crispy shell without overcooking it. The process of reheating frozen croissants differs on timing and temperature from the room-temperature croissant reheating process.

Let’s get on to reheating, then.

Step 1: Preheat your oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celcius).

Step 2: While the oven preheats, place a baking sheet on the baking tray.

Step 3: Place the croissants on the baking tray.

Step 4: Reheat for 7 to 9 minutes.

Step 5: Take it out, add some butter, and enjoy.

Which Reheated Croissant Tastes the Best?

In the end, everything depends on the taste of the food. If you don’t like the taste of your croissant after reheating, that method is not the best choice for you. It may be convenient, but if the reheated croissant leaves you unsatisfied, it is better to try another approach.

To make things easier, we have some verdicts on three pretty different types of reheating method results. We will tell you the things we liked and didn’t like, and lastly, let you know about our favorite method.

Let’s start, shall we?

1. Microwave Croissant

We liked that it was really fast to reheat croissants in the microwave. It is excellent if you are in a hurry and want a quick breakfast. But, honestly, it’s not worth it.

Microwave croissants taste chewy and are too soft. They totally lose the crispy, flaky shell, and all the butter melts, making the croissant mushy and oily. Even with all the greasiness, the croissant becomes dry in a couple of minutes. All we can say is time is the only good thing about this method.

2. Toasted Croissant

Toasted croissants taste just like freshly baked croissants. They get crispier on the outside, and the butter doesn’t melt in the oven. Additionally, they hold on to the original taste and texture.

Whether you toast your croissant in the oven, toaster oven, or on the stovetop, it turns out great every time. The only downside is the time, but we think 4 to 5 minutes is not that long. It is worth the wait!

3. Air Fryer Croissant

Air-fried croissants taste great, maybe not freshly baked, but still delicious. They perfectly crisp the shell and still remain soft and airy on the inside. It also takes very little time to reheat in the air fryer.

Although, there are some things we didn’t like. The croissant gets easily overcooked and sometimes gets burnt a little. The taste decreases with it, and the croissant becomes quite dry.

Our Verdict: You must have figured out which methods are our favorites from the given reasonings. Yes, we have three favorite methods: the oven method being in the first place, the stovetop method right behind it, and lastly, the toaster oven method.

How to Keep Croissants Fresh?

A croissant is a very technical French pastry. It takes time and literally lots of butter to make croissants. Yes, homemade croissants are absolutely delicious, but not everyone has the time to make them. That is why many of us buy tons of croissants from our favorite local bakeries whenever we go there.

But don’t leftover croissants go stale? Well, it will if you don’t store it correctly. So, we have some great ideas to keep your croissants fresh for 36 hours.

(To store the croissants for a longer time, check out the next paragraph.)

1. First, you will need plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
2. Wrap the croissants gently but tight using aluminum foil. If you are using plastic wrap, make sure not to leave any air inside. Fold the corners not to let any moisture in or out.
3. Do not crush the soft upper shell while wrapping.
4. Pop the croissants in a ziplock bag.
5. Leave them at room temperature, but not in direct sunlight.

These small steps will help keep your croissants fresh for 36 hours or two days. You can later reheat and enjoy them.

How to Store Croissants for a Longer Period?

We won’t lie; croissants are a bit hard to store for a long time. But that doesn’t mean it is impossible. We have two storage timelines for croissants: 8 to 10 days and 30 days. Whichever you choose, you must understand that it is a pastry, and it might get soggy, stale, and spoiled. 

8 to 10 Days Storage Instructions

Say hello to your new best friend for storing croissants; it’s the refrigerator! Your croissants will remain chilled and last for a week or two in it. Here are a few instructions for proper storing.

1. Let the croissants cool down completely before doing anything.
2. Wrap the croissants tightly with aluminum foil, but be gentle to avoid breaking the fragile shell.
3. Store them at the back of the fridge so they remain chilled even if you open the door frequently.

30 Days Storage Instructions

If you bought too many croissants, storing them in the freezer is a good option. Moreover, frozen croissants will come in handy if you have guests over.

The storage process is a little different from the refrigerator storing method.

1. You must use plastic wrap if you choose to store it in the freezer.
2. Wrap each croissant gently with the wrap but leave no air inside.
3. After you have done wrapping, rewrap it. It will help retain moisture and not let any ice settle in it.
4. Wrapping it thrice is a good choice if you want to be extra cautious.
5. Now put your croissants in an airtight plastic bag. Make sure the bag is freezable.
6. Place the croissants on top of everything to avoid distortion or breakage.

Now, you can easily enjoy a warm croissant for a week if you refrigerate it or a whole month if you freeze it. Keep in mind to store croissants when they are fresh. Storing stale croissants will not improve their taste. Then again, the longer you store it, the worse it will taste.

A Croissant Summary

Croissants are crescent-shaped delights that are truly delicious breakfast items. They pair great with butter and jam and even work as fantastic sandwich bread. Now that you know all croissants’ reheating methods, you will have no problem reheating leftover croissants.

We hope our little baking research helped you. And, next time you get croissants, store them properly to enjoy them later without worry. Have a croissant, we mean a delightful day ahead!