Panasonic Breadmakers Tips and Quick Questions Thread

superdon

Well, after a long time thinking about it, we bought a 2501 the other day with some nectar points. They are only just over 100 quid at amazon at the moment, and there is also 20 quid cash back from Panasonic. So bit of a bargain I reckon.

Anyway. We did a rapid basic white loaf as our first attempt and was really quite impressed as I had resigned myself to thinking the first would be a dud.

I used carrs strong white flour and some sainsburys active dry yeast.

A few questions.

Do I measure the active yeast in the same way as in the instruction book (1 tsp for example on the rapid)?

If I get some live yeast from the supermarket how do I measure that?

I have just started our second attempt which is a sandwich loaf, again using the active yeast and carrs flour. Why is the initial rest period sooooo long?

The water that you add, is that ok straight from the tap or should it be warmed?

Is it a good idea to stick to the recipes in the book to start with and then experiment later?

Thanks all.

Diflower

Hi superdon, glad your first loaf was a success:T

Not sure what yeast you mean you used. the booklet (mine's a 256) says 'easy blend', fast action' or 'easy bake', but not the kind that needs fermentation first. It always says on the packaging if it's suitable for breadmakers, and if it is, then you use exactly the amount in the booklet.
Fresh yeast - my booklet has recipes for both white & w/meal using fresh yeast, for white it says 8g for 500g flour & 330ml water.
Booklets says no need to warm the water, use straight from the tap.
This is partly why the initial rest is so long; it brings everything to the same temperature before it starts.

It never bothers me how long it takes, I nearly always just set it up in the evening to be done soon after I get up.

There are quite a lot of recipes in my booklet, but don't worry, use any you find, or try and adapt ones you already have. they usually come out edible at least:)

sazzy6

Does anyone know the cheapest place to purchase a panasonic bread maker at the moment?

Karena_3

sazzy6 wrote: »

Does anyone know the cheapest place to purchase a panasonic bread maker at the moment?

http://www.johnlewis.com/231270091/Product.aspx?SearchTerm=RecentlyViewedList

This is about the best I have found if you claim the 20 pounds cash back in time.I am looking for one to point Father Christmas in the right direction.
Other places are also doing the panasonic cash back offer if you look around.However there have been several breadmakers that are second hand almost new on Ebay that have gone for more than the offer above.:)Karen.

Amazon also have the SD-2500 WXC on offer for ninety eight pounds but just be careful to check that you use the offer that has twenty pounds cash back on the page.Some Amazon offers have it but others don't.

superdon

Still need help using live yeast...

Had great success with the dried stuff, every loaf has been great. But, we just tried some live yeast and the loaf hasn't risen properly.

What do I do with the live yeast? Just crumble it in to the bottom of the pan where I would normally out the dried stuff?

I was doing a basic medium loaf. So I used 400g flour, about 7g yeast, teaspoon of salt, teaspoon of suga, 15g butter and 280ml of water.

I usually out yeast, sugar and salt in first, then flour, then water and gutter on top.

What have I done wrong, or should I just stick with dried yeast?

Jazzy_B

I use fresh yeast all the time. I put in a cube about 2cms square, then flour to completely cover, salt in one corner, sugar in the other, oil on top, then water. Never had any problems yet. Good luck

saving_is_fun

Hi, Could anyone advise me please which is the best bread making book to accompany a Panasonic bread maker. Thanks:T

mmmsnow

I have The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook. It has lots of recipes for breads, rolls, cakes, etc. My personal favourite is the carrot and fennel bread.

I got it second hand from Amazon (it's currently £1.50 plus postage): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ultimate-Bread-Machine-Cookbook/dp/1843091844/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1325022565&sr=8-2

lizzyb1812

saving - have you got the manual? That's the best place to learn how different recipes turn out. I've got it saved as a pdf so can pm you if you want.

saving_is_fun

Thanks, I bought the bread maker for someone for Xmas and thought a book would be a good birthday gift.
mmmsnow, just checked out that one on Amazon, looks really good thanks.
lizzy, I presume she has the manual but just thought a book would give a few more ideas and show some good pictures etc, Thanks.