Bread maker questions...

SarahNeedle1872

Hi... I have been thinking of investing in a bread maker as they seem very popular on the OS board, and I love the idea of leaving it on over night and coming down to fresh bread in the morning. Couple of question tho....

How much do I need to spend on one? Are there any that people can recommend - I am looking at value for money rather than price.

Do you have to use special ingredients for making the bread? Is there any idiot guides you can recommend?

How long does the bread last? As theres only two adults in our house, and my OH doesn't eat much bread, it's mainly me that'll be eating it.

Thanks in advance

S x

dannahaz

Hello Sarah

You're probably going to get two or three consistent recommendations. I would bet that the two most popular will be theMorphy Richards FastBake and the Panasonic. They each have their own devoted (and vociferous) following.

Me, I'm a Panny girl. I have a Panasonic SD253, which has the raisin dispenser. These are usually about £99, but thet occasionally come up on special offer, so you could do a google search.

My Panny is fantastic. I can cook a wide variety of breads, it has a timer so I can leave it overnight, and I can do various doughs as well.

I didn't think I'd use the raisin dispenser, but then I found myself making malt bread, currant buns, and goodness knows what else.

There is also a 252 which doesn't have the raisin dispenser.

I'm sure you'll get plenty of other supporting replies, and many of the Fastbakers will be along to tell you that the Panny is too expensive, buy a Morphy Richards. I'll let them tell you the virtues of their machine.

I think the reality is both BMs are very good. Just the Panny is better.;)

nell2

I'll put in a vote for the Morphy Richards Fastbake - currently available for just £29.55 direct from Morphy Richards with free delivery. I got mine about a month ago and absolutely love it. It's really easy to use and makes gorgeous bread.
I can't tell you have long the bread would last as it's usually gone within 24 hours in our house. However, you could slice a loaf and freeze it and just pull out the odd slice or two when you need it if you don't get through all that much bread. Makes great pizza bases too, and apparently (although I haven't tried it) jam.
It's really easy to use. Just put the ingredients in the pan in the order stated in the recipe booklet (which contains a good selection to get you started), place pan in machine, select programme, loaf size and crust colour together with the time you want your bread to be ready, and away you go.
Most people use strong bread flour I think which you can get in all supermarkets (although I hear that some people have had success with plain flour). You also need yeast for breadmakers (I use Dove's Farm from Lakeland or Tescos), dried milk powder (optional), sunflower oil, salt, and sugar. The machine comes with a measuring cup and two measuring spoons and it really easy super-easy!
I'm sure the Panasonic is great, but I couldn't run to it. I'm really pleased with my MR though, and the Panny would have to be spectacularly good to justify being more than three times more expensive.

Pink.

Hi SarahNeedle,

These older threads may help:

Which Breadmaker to get?

Can anyone recommend a good Breadmaker?

Cheapest decent BM?

Postive and negative comments on breadmakers please?

I am in love with my Panasonic breadmaker

The Morphy Richards fastbake BM Club


There are too many threads on what breadmaker to buy for me to list them here but if you have a look in The Complete Breadmaking Collection you should find them all.

Pink