Panasonic 255 bread maker paddle bakes inside loaf - any tips?

usignuolo

Well I have bought a Panasonic 255 breadmaker and am generally very happy with the results but there is one problem. 9/10 times the paddle is baked inside the loaf and I have to shake the tin until the bread comes out, with the paddle baked inside it and then cut out the paddle.

There is a bit of play on the paddle where it fits onto the screw in the bottom of the tin. Also the paddle does not sit completely flat on the bottom of the tin. There is a small gap underneath it so bread dough forms between paddle and tin bottom and bakes around it and seals the paddle in the loaf. Is this normal or do I have a faulty paddle? Should I try a different recipe or get a replacement paddle?. I cannot easily return it to the shop as it came from Amazon.

buxtonrabbitgreen

I have just had a look in the trouble shooting section of the instructions and summarised it says: some flours absorb more water than others so try adding 10 to 20 mls extra water.Also wash the blade and spindle after every use.
When I made the firts loaf the paddle stuck but hasn't since.
the paddle on mine doesn't sit tight against the bottom. I think that is how they are supposed to be.
So you could try a bit more water or a different make of flour. I use Sainsburys strong bread flour, both white and wholemeal. hth

squeaky

Hiya,

The gap at the bottom is normal, though I'm not so sure about the play. A small amount shouldn't cause you a problem.

There's no easy answer that I can find in Old Style where there are loads of threads and tips on using a panny - but what you could do is use the contact details in the following link to either email them or phone and ask for help. I'm told they are very good.

http://shop.panasonic.co.uk/icat/abreadmaker

HTH

ariba10

We have had ours about two years.

The paddle came off once or twice in the begining but once it started sticking to the shaft we have never tried to remove it.

usignuolo

Everyone thanks for the tips. I have emailed the contact email iddy for advice and I will also try using some more water, and report back. But if the dough slides between the bottom of the paddle and the tin, when it is cooking, surely it is bound to bake the paddle in? I am using Canadian strong flour which is recommended in the instructions.

Lancastrian

I had the same problem but in the end I decided to remove the paddle after the second knead. I finish up with a small hole and not a big tear across 2 or 3 slices.

usignuolo

Well I contacted Panasonic advice team and they replied very quickly. They also suggested adding more water to the dough mix. I am using Canadian strong white flour (recommended in a separate note in the box). I wonder if this makes a stickier dough so needs more water. I will try out the Panasonic suggestion and report back. I have posted their reply below for anyone who has had problems with the paddle baking inside the bread and wants to try it.

Meanwhile, has anyone tried the pizza dough recipe? or the croissants?

Sometimes if the dough is a bit stiff it can get stuck under the kneading blade during the mixing process, thus when the loaf bake the bit of dough that's under the paddle forms the bottom crust. This means that the paddle is in the loaf. The solution is to add 10-20ml more water to the dough at the start and this will make the dough softer and it will move off more easily so it won’t get caught under the paddle.

Then when you tip out your loaf wiggle the spindle on the base of the bucket. If you tip the bucket upsidedown you will see a protruding cylinder. In the middle of the cylinder is a metal bar. If you wiggle this you will be wiggling the paddle in the loaf. Obviously you will need oven gloves on!

If you still find after this that the paddle is in the loaf you will need to wait until the loaf is completely cold. Then feel with your fingers where the paddle is. Then break the bottom crust just using your fingertips - no tools- and remove the paddle, leaving a slit where it was.

There is a lot of play on the paddle/spindle. I would say probably about a quarter of a turn. This is so that when dough gets caught around the paddle it can still rotate. A gap under the paddle is ok too.

I hope this answers your query. You can also contact us by phone on 01344 862108 Monday - Thursday 9.00-2 or of course by email if you have any further comments.

helping_hubby

Yep I've made pizza dough and croissants.

I've experimented a lot with the pizza dough, I've found the best is with Strong flour (I know this is recommended - but I do use value flour when funds are low), and using olive oil instead of butter. I use 1 tablespoon of olive oil and reduce the amount of water by that amount.

I've experimented with thickness of the pizza base and prefer it thinner. It's quite breadlike if it's too thick.

I've tried freezing the dough and this worked well, I froze it as a ball in clingfilm. But just found the edges didn't rise as much as when it was freshly made. I've read that some people have frozen it pre-rolled out which I plan to test out next.

Finally I tried a half and half pizza! half wholemeal, half white - this worked well, but was sooooo filling, so I split the dough into 3 when making 50/50.

Croissants were just way too much hard work to be worthwhile! And it's also very very scarey to see how much butter actually goes into them, but they were yummy. I won't be making them again though.

I'd recommend making bread rolls too if you haven't done so already, these freeze really well for sandwiches if you don't eat them all as they come out of the oven!

gmgmgm

Very impressed you made the croissants! I looked at the recipe steps, then headed off to Waitrose to buy some of theirs :-)

The blade has come off a few times, but it's not a problem. I don't think it's come off in the last six months.

I confirm the olive oil tip: don't bother with that butter faff- just put in a table-spoon or so of olive oil. Much easier. I don't vary the water content to match- maybe this is why I don't get problems with the blade.

BritRael

I love that bread maker!

I (almost) always use granary flour, and like yours, the paddle sometimes sticks, and always there is hole through a few slices. Of course, the hole cannot be avoided as the loaf is baked with the paddle in situ.
Yes, there has to be small gap between the underside of the paddle and the bottom of the tin, otherwise it would scrape as it rotates.
I just wish the loaves were bigger. Even the biggest is what I'd call small

BritRael

As this is a money-saving forum, I should also add the financial benefits of owning this machine. I've calculated that I only have to bake around 10,000 loaves and it will have paid for itself!! Result!