Panasonic Breadmakers Tips and Quick Questions Thread

cooking-mama

mandy_moo_1 wrote: »

well, i've bitten the bullet,and bought myself the panasonic 255....i've been using my MR one for years, and i always left out the milk powder as it made the bread too cake-y......do i do the same when i use the panny? leave the milk powder out?

all my loaves always turned out gorgeous with the MR....but i wanted another BM so decided to go with the panasonic this time, so i can have 2 on the go at once!! i'll just be so disheartened if the loaves arent as nice with the panny

could you please post and let us know if the panasonic makes "cakey" bread..im holding off until the kenwood bm450 is reduced in Argos,(but dont know if i can last until October without a BM)but im also still tempted to try the new panasonic sd256,but not if it produces cakey bread,we dont like sweet bread at all.

sparrer

I've had my panny a year this month and never had a cakey texture or taste from it. It just makes good honest loaves of bread. It might be to do with not having to add milk powder as I did with my previous machine, but more likely that it's the best bm on the market - just my humble opinion of course

Swan_2

cooking-mama wrote: »

could you please post and let us know if the panasonic makes "cakey" bread..im holding off until the kenwood bm450 is reduced in Argos,(but dont know if i can last until October without a BM)but im also still tempted to try the new panasonic sd256,but not if it produces cakey bread,we dont like sweet bread at all.

the Pannys & Kenwoods make very similar bread, not at all cakey even if you use a recipe including milk or milk powder
the Kenwood has the edge for me, the bread's just as good as the Panny's, but it's a lot more more versatile ... not to mention better-looking

I think as sparrer said above, the results are more to do with the machine than the recipes, I used to have a Morphy Richards Fastbake & no matter what recipes I used, the results were always cakey
I didn't actually realise how un-bready the bread was until I tried the Panny & the Kenwood

cooking-mama

Swan wrote: »

the Pannys & Kenwoods make very similar bread, not at all cakey even if you use a recipe including milk or milk powder
the Kenwood has the edge for me, the bread's just as good as the Panny's, but it's a lot more more versatile ... not to mention better-looking

I think as sparrer said above, the results are more to do with the machine than the recipes, I used to have a Morphy Richards Fastbake & no matter what recipes I used, the results were always cakey
I didn't actually realise how un-bready the bread was until I tried the Panny & the Kenwood

Thanks Swan,its great to have advice from someone who is currently using both machines,...I am a big fan of the kenwood,but im struggling waiting on the price to drop(looks like October 12th)Argos couldnt repair my wee Rachel Allen breadmaker that i got 1/2 price at £35...so i have £35 in vouchers which would get me the new SD256 for £64 today...or possibly the Kenwood BM450 for the same price in October( if Argos drop the price to £99 again)
im mainly wanting the machine for plain white and 50/50 bread...im wondering now if the panasonic would be good enough for our simple needs;)..Also for overnight baking I do remember its a lot quieter than the kenwood BM450,but the kenwood is far superior in looks(well without the big advertising sticker around it it is!)
PS,/do you think both machines give the same curved top and crusty finish?(ive a vague memory of the kenwood bread being flatter and less curved on top,but cant realy remember,I may be getting confused by my last BM,that started producing "lop sided" loaves before it seized up at one paddle...was a long loaf machine with 2 paddles...wish the bigger brands would make something similar)
Oh dear...decsions decisions.:)

Swan_2

hi cookingmama,
I'm sure we've spoken before on another BM thread?

the Kenwood's £85.90 at Amazon just now ... it changed from £92.90 in the time it took me to post this :eek: goodness knows what price it'll be 5 minutes from now :roll-eyes:


EDIT ... I agree the Kenwood's noisier than the Panny, I had to think twice about where to situate it for using overnight!

I thought the Kenwood loaves were a bit flatter too, but I put that down to me not being used to the machine as it's still quite new & needing to tweak the recipes & dough consistency a bit
I find the Kenwood loaves crustier, particularly on top, possibly to do with the fan? but the actual consistency of the bread is very similar

cooking-mama

Swan wrote: »

hi cookingmama,
I'm sure we've spoken before on another BM thread?

the Kenwood's £85.90 at Amazon just now ... it changed from £92.90 in the time it took me to post this :eek:

yes Swan we did:)..True enough Amazon have dropped the price again...Wish Argos had given me my money back instead of a voucher!!...The panasonic SD256 is also £20 cheaper on Amazon than in Argos just now.
I did like the bread from the kenwood in the short time i had it,but i remember family complaining that it was noisy overnight..even the dog was up barking.But when i tried the panasonic SD254 they thought the bread was "cakey",cant remember what recipes i used tho,but ive bought a breadmaker book with a lot of sugar free bread recipes in,im wondering if that would be better suited to the panasonic..Think i may choose the machine that uses least sugar/salt/yeast.
Wish i could make my blinking mind up:rotfl:
PS/Just remembered it was the Costco board,i was wondering what price the panasonic was in costco.x

Swan_2

I just noticed you've got Argos vouchers, sorry I remember the sticker problem & should have remembered where you got the Kenwood

tbh, I don't think there's an awful lot to choose between the machines in terms of the results they give, just wait for your moment & strike!

Swan_2

that's right, the Costco thread

sorry, I don't know what the prices there are just now, it was way back in June I last looked

cooking-mama

No worries Swan...ive just printed off some recipe samples and baking times etc from the panasonic and kenwood links you very kindly put on another thread(one about someone having problems getting a decent loaf,im gonna compare the 2 and make my decision from there....basicaly they are both good machines,and either way by using my Argos vouchers I should get a decent machine for £64ish...my decison being,The panasonic Now...or the Kenwood in October.
Tho if last night is anything to go by,the Panny could pay for itself by October..OH phoned me on way home from work(i finished at 10pm!),we need bread..£1.50 for a white loaf from the petrol garage..Yikes

Swan_2

I use the recipes from both books interchangeably (sp?) & find they work well in either machine

although one of the best loaves I make is adapted from a recipe posted ages ago by a member called Posh Paws, it's seedy & has quite a few ingredients but is well worth the effort
if you're interested, I'll PM it to you, not sure we're allowed to put recipes in this thread