The Garlic Bread Technique You Need To Start Using

If you thought you needed an oven to make garlic bread, think again. Foodie influencer and chef Cedric Thompson, who goes by @readycedcook on TikTok and Instagram, recently shared his method for making garlic bread. And judging by the comments, it may be even better than the traditional kind.

Thompson's garlic bread recipe calls for an entire loaf of bread as seen in the viral video. In the instructions shared in his Instagram post, Thompson explains that it's important to use unsliced white bread for this, as you'll need to cut it into ultra-thick rectangular chunks. After removing the crust and cutting up the bread, Thompson slathers each in homemade compound butter, combining 1½ sticks of butter with minced garlic, parsley, Italian seasoning, and kosher salt. After, he sears each side of the generously buttered bread in a pan over medium heat until golden and crispy. The result is garlic bread like you've never had before.

Though Cedric Thompson seems to be getting most of the credit for the technique, he left a caption on his Instagram post, that fellow creator Jacky Kwok, who goes by the TikTok name, @kwokspots, originally gave him the idea. Kwok's version of the garlic bread, also shared to TikTok, differs slightly in the seasoning of the compound butter. However, the main difference is that he uses an entirely different bread, which commenters have identified as tangzhong, or Japanese milk bread. Kwok confirmed that the bread did come from his local Asian bakery but did not specify what type of bread it was.

The prep and process in both Thompson and Kwok's recipes may be similar, but because of the bread, they produce different results. Thanks to the high sugar and fat content, tangzhong is pillowy soft, and slightly sweet, unlike the kind generally used for garlic bread. Kwok's version, therefore, creates more of a contrasting texture and flavor, while Thompson's is more reminiscent of the traditional kind. However, as long as you like garlic, either version of the recipe is worth trying.