Postive and negative comments on breadmakers please?

BUBBLES_3

We have recently bought a Panasonic from Amazon which offered the best price and delivered free in three days. My mother has used a Panasonic for 8 years and is very reliable.

I think they are worth it and the bread is very good. At least you know whats in it! Results can be slightly variable but it depends on the flour which can be variable from batch to bag as its a natural ingrediant. Accurancy when weighing is the key - use electronic scales.

You can make and bake cakes in it eg gingerbread etc they list it in the book they give you. It will mix dough for certain breads that wont bake in the bread maker usually because they dont fit ie French Stick.

We think its our best buy!

snow

If I see that the dough has not risen enough, I just switch the BM off, let the dough rise and then start the programme "Bake". Or shape it to whatever you want and bake in the oven.

Zed42

We've had a Panasonic BM (SD251) for about 6yrs I think.

DH is not keen on their basic white loaf, but likes their ciabatta loaf.
I find that the ciabatta loaf doesn't toast so well, and I find the large size a bit too large (height wise).

However, it is very convenient, and making a loaf on a timer and coming down to fresh baked bread is very moreish ....

Recently, I've started to make bread with my Kenwood, and I'm now batch cooking loaves and popping them in to the freezer ... this works out more convenient for us (I work p/t from home) and is also quicker than the BM!

I've now got to master slicing loaves thinly before freezing and we'll be sorted!

tigs78

I'm not very OS but I have to say the breadmaker was the best OS piece of equipment ever invented! I have a Panasonic SD253, perfect results every time, the only downside is that the bread is so lovely it's near enough impossible to just eat one slice.

Could you borrow a breadmaker from someone to see how often you actually use it? If you find yourself using it regularly then I'd advise you to splash out on a Panasonic.

Penny-Pincher!!

We use the BM mainly for pizza dough. I dont particularly like bread made in the BM as I find too heavy, but we have found a nice french bread recipe that is lighter.

PP
xx

Heth_2

We got a Panasonic 253 recently as a birthday present. For us (no kids, commuting, quite stressfull busy jobs) it is really usefull as:
- no need to go to buy fresh bread in the middle of the week, we just make some overnight.
- great for pizza dough. I used to make this by hand sometimes at the weekend, but now it's easier to have in the week as my husband can 'make it' in the breadmaker when he gets home, and by the time I'm home we can prepare the pizza. Same thing for naan breads.
- good for making special type loaves

I think all our loaves so far have worked pretty well. One downside is the time it takes, you need to be a bit organised, but apart from that I love it.

debtworrier

newlywed wrote:

Thanks for that - didn't realise till a link in that thread that you can leave it in a cool place to rise for 12-24 hours!! Might be able to make the dough in the evening and finish it off the next evening - or next day over the weekend!! :T

You can leave bread to rise overnight in the refrigerator (if you've got room!)

mah_jong

Heth wrote:

I think all our loaves so far have worked pretty well. One downside is the time it takes, you need to be a bit organised, but apart from that I love it.

TBH when I found I was out of bread it took no time at all to throw the stuff in the panny ...... a lot quicker than going to the shop!!! Mind you I did have to wait for it to bake!!!

I do mine at night on delay and wake up to a fresh bread .......not one brick in the years I have used it ....OH :eek: just one baked mess, when I forgot to add the water! I have left most things out from time to time :rotfl: ....water is the only thing it wont cook a loaf without!!!

I have not bought bread in 2 years now!

newlywed

debtworrier wrote:

You can leave bread to rise overnight in the refrigerator (if you've got room!)

Since meal planning and grocery challenges, there is usually room in the fridge - never was before that due to overstocking of stuff that wasn't always used before it went bad

carbonel

I now make Soda bread - no BM needed, no yeast to fiddle with, no rising needed. whole job done from flour packet to cooked loaf in just over 1 hour!!

6oz SR Flour
6oz Plain Flour (I use wholemeal, makes nice speckledy loaf)
1/2 teasp salt
1/2 teasp Bicarbonate of Soda (in baking aisle of all supermarkets)
1/2 pint Buttermilk (by milk/cream in supermarkets)

Mix all the dry ingredients together, mix in buttermilk (add drop of ordinary milk if too dry), knead on floured surface 3 mins, flatten out to 2" thick approx (will rise a bit in oven), place on floured baking tray, pop in oven 200c (140 fan oven) and bake for 30 -40 mins till brown and crusty. Yum Yum! :T