[0 - 1] - I'm Frank Proto,
[1 - 2] professional chef and culinary instructor.
[2 - 4] And today, I'm gonna show you the best way
[4 - 6] to make French toast... Frank style.
[7 - 9] We're talking everything you need to know
[9 - 12] to make the most crispy, custardy French toast
[12 - 14] you have ever stuffed in your face.
[14 - 16] This is French toast 101.
[18 - 21] My perfect French toast is lightly crispy on the outside,
[21 - 23] custardy like a bread pudding on the inside,
[23 - 25] and a little bit of sweetness.
[25 - 27] The worst kind of French toast,
[27 - 30] dry, flat, or squishy and soggy.
[30 - 31] No flavor at all.
[31 - 32] Let's get this going.
[32 - 35] [light guitar music]
[35 - 37] The secret to the best French toast
[37 - 38] is choosing the right bread.
[38 - 42] I like the challah. Challah bread, baby.
[42 - 44] It's got the right density, great flavor,
[44 - 46] and I like to slice my own.
[46 - 47] I like to go two fingers.
[47 - 50] I don't really use the butt end that much,
[50 - 51] although my wife will eat this.
[51 - 52] I'll give that to her.
[52 - 55] I like the thickness because I want it to be substantial.
[55 - 57] I don't want a wimpy piece of French toast.
[57 - 60] Not only that, the thickness allows for maximum amount
[60 - 63] of absorption of the liquid that we're gonna put this in,
[63 - 65] and I want it to soak in really well.
[65 - 67] I want it to be like a bread pudding,
[67 - 69] plus it looks really good on the plate.
[69 - 70] Look at it. She's gorgeous.
[70 - 73] What I like about challah is got a really tight crumb.
[73 - 75] Bread that has like a very loose crumb,
[75 - 77] like lots of big bubbles,
[77 - 79] doesn't really work all that great for this
[79 - 82] because that tight crumb is what soaks up the liquid.
[82 - 87] If you can't find holo bread, find a nice sturdy white loaf.
[87 - 90] Something that is baked at the local bakery,
[90 - 92] not something you get on the shelf at the supermarket.
[92 - 94] I'm gonna slice these and put them on a tray
[94 - 98] because I want our bread to dry out a little. Pain perdu.
[98 - 101] The French term for French toast means "lost bread."
[101 - 103] It's daily bread that's a little stale.
[103 - 105] Not only does it soak up more liquid,
[105 - 107] which means more flavor in our French toast,
[107 - 109] I feel like it also gives us a little better texture,
[109 - 112] So, that when we finally cook it, it's not gonna fall apart.
[112 - 116] If you don't have the time to let this dry out overnight,
[116 - 119] put it in a low oven, 200 degrees, 250,
[119 - 121] and just do a really light toast on it
[121 - 122] for about 15, 20 minutes.
[122 - 123] So, I'm gonna put this aside.
[123 - 124] And while we wait for it to dry out,
[124 - 126] I'm gonna make my batter.
[126 - 129] [light guitar music]
[129 - 132] Your batter is your chance to add as much flavor
[132 - 133] as possible to your French toast.
[133 - 135] One of the biggest mistakes I see with French toast is
[135 - 138] that people do not set it up like a custard.
[138 - 140] At the end of the day, this is a custard.
[140 - 143] It's got eggs and cream or eggs and dairy in it.
[143 - 145] First thing I wanna do for my custard
[145 - 146] is I have a little bit of nutmeg.
[146 - 147] I'm gonna put that in the bowl.
[147 - 150] Nutmeg and custards is just wonderful.
[150 - 152] Orange zest, this is one of those things
[152 - 155] that is a very Frank thing, right?
[155 - 158] I love orange zest in my food.
[158 - 160] And then you pair orange zest with nutmeg and brandy
[160 - 162] and you are in heaven.
[162 - 163] We're gonna put a pinch of salt.
[163 - 164] Salt is a flavor enhancer.
[164 - 167] You always want to use a little bit of salt with your sweet.
[167 - 169] It accentuates all the flavors.
[169 - 170] We're gonna add cream.
[170 - 172] If you're worried about cream, use half and half.
[172 - 173] Use whole milk.
[173 - 176] Once you start getting into the 1%, 2% milk, even skim milk,
[176 - 177] it's like, don't bother.
[177 - 179] Now, you're just gonna have wet bread.
[179 - 181] The basic ratio for a custard
[181 - 183] is two cups of cream, four eggs.
[183 - 186] With that ratio, your custard will set up
[186 - 189] and not be watery at the end of cooking.
[189 - 192] So, I have my cream, my nutmeg, my orange zest.
[192 - 193] I'm going to add sugar.
[193 - 194] You need sweet here.
[194 - 196] Brandy. Is it a little over the top?
[196 - 198] Yeah, it's a little over the top.
[198 - 200] But hey, that's me, a little over the top.
[200 - 202] I think it compliments all the flavors in here really well.
[202 - 204] If you don't have it, don't bother.
[204 - 205] Some vanilla extract.
[205 - 207] Last but not least, we're gonna put our eggs in.
[207 - 210] Eggs are the cement that holds everything together.
[210 - 213] And for us, the eggs are gonna hold our custard together.
[214 - 216] You could use a whisk for this.
[216 - 218] My only problem with the whisk is that
[218 - 220] when you have dry spices like nutmeg,
[220 - 222] it doesn't blend all that well
[222 - 223] and the nutmeg tends to clump up.
[223 - 225] And then you'll have a bite of French toast
[225 - 227] that has a lot of nutmeg, and a bite that doesn't have any.
[228 - 230] So, the immersion blender here works really well
[230 - 231] at combining this.
[231 - 234] Everything's incorporated really well.
[234 - 235] We're ready for the bread.
[235 - 238] [light guitar music]
[238 - 240] So, here's our dried out bread.
[240 - 240] Don't just go in there
[240 - 243] and plop it in, plop it in, and then fry it.
[243 - 245] You need a good 20 to 30-minute soak.
[245 - 247] I'm only gonna put about three slices in here.
[247 - 248] I don't wanna overcrowd this
[248 - 250] because if they kind of rest on top each other,
[250 - 253] they don't really soak up as much of the liquid.
[253 - 254] Move it around.
[254 - 257] Make sure that we get all sides coated.
[257 - 258] If you don't let it soak long enough,
[258 - 260] the middle is going to be dry.
[260 - 262] So, right now, if I squeeze it,
[262 - 263] it's still firm in the center.
[263 - 264] That tells me that the custard
[264 - 267] is not fully incorporated into the bread.
[267 - 270] The French toast has been soaking for about 20 minutes.
[270 - 271] Let's get the piece out here.
[271 - 274] You can see that it's actually really soft, right?
[274 - 278] You push your finger in, it's super soft. Squeeze in.
[278 - 279] If the liquid comes out like a sponge,
[279 - 280] you're ready to go.
[280 - 283] And with that, it is time to cook.
[283 - 286] [light guitar music]
[286 - 287] When you're cooking this French toast,
[287 - 289] you want to go low and slow.
[289 - 291] If you have high heat,
[291 - 292] it's gonna be dark brown on the outside
[292 - 294] and soggy in the center.
[294 - 296] Take your time. Be patient.
[296 - 299] I'm gonna turn my pan onto about a medium heat,
[299 - 300] and then I'm gonna put copious amounts
[300 - 302] of butter in here, right?
[302 - 304] I am not shy about the butter
[304 - 306] because I want my outside to get a little crispy.
[306 - 307] I like salted butter.
[307 - 310] I think the saltiness really accents the sweetness
[310 - 311] in the French toast.
[311 - 312] Now, I know my temperature is good
[312 - 315] 'cause my butter did not start to sizzle
[315 - 317] when I put it in the pan.
[317 - 319] I want the butter to melt slowly
[319 - 321] and coat the bottom of the pan.
[321 - 322] Our butter is melted.
[322 - 324] It is not starting to sizzle yet.
[324 - 326] But actually, you can see a little bit of sizzling there
[326 - 327] and that's good.
[327 - 328] What I'm gonna do with this
[328 - 330] is I'm gonna drain it just a little,
[330 - 332] and then we can lay them in our pan.
[332 - 333] We don't wanna squeeze it out.
[333 - 336] We just wanna get some of that surface moisture off.
[336 - 337] Lay it in the pan.
[337 - 340] If you see that it's bubbling really rapidly
[340 - 342] around the French toast, lower your heat.
[342 - 345] We want light little bubbles. Light bubbles, and we're okay.
[345 - 346] You just want to make sure
[346 - 349] that that center is nice and cooked.
[349 - 351] French toast has been cooking for about four minutes
[351 - 353] So, we're starting to get nice and golden brown.
[353 - 354] So, it's time to turn.
[354 - 356] So, let's turn these babies.
[356 - 358] We got it nice and brown.
[358 - 360] This is our presentation side. It's beautiful.
[360 - 363] Now, we just let it go for about another five
[363 - 364] to seven minutes on low heat,
[364 - 368] and that center cud will get nice and set and delicious.
[368 - 370] If you have little pieces of batter on here,
[370 - 372] you can always just peel them off.
[372 - 373] Just get rid of 'em.
[373 - 375] You can see there's lots of butter here.
[375 - 377] I like to swirl things in my pan,
[377 - 379] so they soak up some of that butter.
[379 - 382] The French toast is done, and this is how I test it, right?
[382 - 384] We have a lot of that custard in the middle.
[384 - 386] If I can push down in the center
[386 - 388] and I start seeing liquid squeeze out,
[388 - 389] it is not cooked enough.
[389 - 391] You have to let it go a little longer.
[391 - 392] We're beautifully brown.
[392 - 394] It smells good.
[394 - 398] See how nice and soft and fluffy it is, but not soggy?
[398 - 399] Am I the only one that wants to eat this
[399 - 400] like right outta the pan?
[400 - 403] [light guitar music]
[403 - 406] When it comes to French toast, lots of syrup,
[406 - 409] lots of butter, lots of love.
[409 - 412] So, I always start out, and again, I use whipped butter.
[412 - 414] I just think the salted whipped butter
[414 - 417] is something that's just extra special.
[417 - 418] Nestle that down.
[419 - 421] Another knob of butter.
[421 - 422] So, let's do this.
[422 - 424] Little butter on top.
[424 - 426] And then we have real maple syrup.
[426 - 428] And my opinion, this is the only way to go.
[428 - 431] And as if this wasn't sweet enough,
[431 - 433] just a little bit of powdered sugar on top.
[433 - 435] Make it extra special.
[435 - 438] First person that tells me they wouldn't eat that,
[438 - 438] I'm done with you.
[438 - 441] And this is the best way to make French toast at home.
[441 - 442] Let's give it a taste.
[442 - 444] I'm gonna cut into this piece here.
[444 - 448] Look soft and custard in the middle. Delicious.
[448 - 450] Slather a little butter on it.
[450 - 454] Get a little syrup. [groovy music]
[456 - 457] You taste a little bit of brandy.
[457 - 459] You taste a little bit of orange.
[459 - 460] It's just like you get these little pops
[460 - 461] of flavor as you eat it.
[461 - 464] Everything kind of like goes so well together.
[465 - 468] This is the most amazing French toast you'll ever make.