Does the bread maker save your family budget?

PasturesNew

If I were to ever have any strange desire to own a breadmaker I'd prefer to look down the route of a food mixer with a good dough attachment. All a breadmaker does is: mixes the dough, waits for it to rise, heats it up to become a loaf. If you eat a lot of (nice) bread and don't have the time to think about moving dough from a bowl into a pan, then a breadmaker would work. But if you've got the time, just not the inclination to make the dough by hand, then a mixer will mix it up and then you just have to have the desire/time to tip it into a bread tin and put it in the oven, then be around when it's ready to come out.

So, do you want to make dough .... or bread. It's about time/faff/convenience and how you think it'd fit into your daily schedules best.

Living_proof

I think you will need to make 2lb loaves for a family and the best one I have come across is a Panasonic. They are not terribly expensive now new, but it might be advisable to buy a second hand one to see if the whole operation is right for you. I have a Morphy Richards bought second-hand from a CBS and it is still going strong after about 12 years, cost - £5! Now I just make 1lb or 1.5lb loaves to stop waste, but you can add all sorts of seeds and goodies much more cheaply than buying from a store.

HappyMJ

WantToBeSE wrote: »

Where are the 'rules' that say this? A breadmaker is to make bread, and doesnt have rules that tell you to only eat the bread on that day, or to make the bread in the evening, or how much bread to eat,or at what time of the day.

We are a family of 3 and our breadmaker makes a loaf about half the size of a normal loaf, so it doesnt make sense for us.

The guidelines are in the manual.

The bread goes stale very quickly so it's best eaten within 24 hours. The whole point of it is to make fresh healthy bread without preservatives.

There are guidelines on how much bread to eat. A whole 800 gram loaf in one day between 3 people would be too much. A 454 gram (1 pound) loaf between 4 people would be just about right.

Rain_Shadow

Don't waste your money unless you have some physical reason that prevents you kneading dough.


I make my bread by hand and it is a very satisfying thing to do. I had a bread maker, and not a cheap one, but got fed up with the variable results. Having not used it for years I finally binned it recently.

WantToBeSE

Rain_Shadow wrote: »

Don't waste your money unless you have some physical reason that prevents you kneading dough.


I make my bread by hand and it is a very satisfying thing to do. I had a bread maker, and not a cheap one, but got fed up with the variable results. Having not used it for years I finally binned it recently.

Yes, i am thinking about donating mine, or selling it.

suki1964

Mums one went to the charity shop a few years back as it was sitting collecting dust

I make by hand, or Kenwood. Much quicker in my mind, mix it up in minutes, leave to rise whilst getting on with something else, knock back, shape and leave to rise again, and stick it in the oven when cooking

Often I leave it to rise over night in the fridge, much better flavour

Looking forward to experimenting in the pizza oven when weather gets better

jessikavel

Thanks to all, guys :T

HOWMUCH

I bought one for £5 off eBay a Panasonic but don't use it because I buy YS bread last night I got a hovis granary for 5p and 8 panini for 58p and 12 fruit tea cakes for 48p.

[Deleted User]

I have had panasonic bread makers for years. OK there are only two of us. I make a large loaf, either white or wholemeal. Once its baked, leave it to the next day and slice it using a slicer. I then use a tray, put the slices on and freeze for about an hour and then bag them up. I can take out what I want when I want it and a loaf lasts us 3 - 4 days.

There is no preservative in hand made bread, so making bread using a machine is fine and yes I do save money.

Mine is on just now making bread for lunch tomorrow.

Gigervamp

I inherited my dad's breadmaker. I used it a few times, but didn't like the massive hole in the middle from the paddle, so I gave it to my friend.

I then used my Kitchen Aid to mix the dough and baked it in the oven. That way, I could try different shaped bread and bake a much bigger loaf.

Homemade bread lasts more than one day. Mine was good to eat for 3 or 4 days.