What's Your Opinion on Bread Making Machines

[Paulsgirl]

I have a Panasonic and love it. I'd suggest buying a model with a nut dispenser as this will automatically drop your nuts/fruit in during the process.

 

[olddog]

............ Regarding the cost debate firstly my main reason for a bread machine is health reasons, not cost funny enough - not happy about the additives in the shop bought stuff - particularly the salt - but has anyone else had the experience of finding some sliced pan in the cupboard that is out of date and its still soft to the touch but there is blue mould on it! Just doesn't seem right and there must be a lorry load of additives in it as well.............

Hmmm......

I was inclined to be leaning you direction when we got ours.
In fact there is much more to it then this, a lot more options, more freedom to 'brew your own mix'.

Over time I have reluctantly, had to learn to avoid cheap supplies. For example Tesco branded 'stong white flour' just does not do the job ( but it is - as Mr Kipling might say - exceedingly cheap ).

We now seem to use nearly all Doves Farm product ( www.dovesfarm.co.uk ) which never seems to be the lowest cost ( Sainsbury & Tesco in N.I. generally have good stocks ) but always seem to produce the right result.

With regard to bargin Pannys keep an eye on the motley fool board ( link posted a while ago ) - from time to time amazon have them on special offer.

In common with Blob, I too have heard good reports of the Lidl product - Its a pity that they dont sell yeast or stong flour over here

 

[bonniecat]

Bought very cheap breadmaker in Lidl last xmas - have used a few times, makes nice bread. But honestly it is as easy to make it yourself as to drag out the breadmaker. All you need is a few supplies, a few minutes to mix, strong hands to knead (very good workout!!) and imagination to add nice extras like olives, nuts, choc chips etc. Nothing nicer than fresh bread and it is easy to make speciality breads or special diet breads.

 

[Rumpelstilz]

Dear BMM,

Most of the time a breadmaker is operating it is either kneading or rising. Both operations use very little energy. Baking is the time that significant energy is used. As I posted above, my Panny uses in all just under one kWhr to produce a loaf.

I dont understand what you mean when you say 'It's not fair to talk about nightsaver electricity'.

Whats not fair about having a day/night meter ?

Well over half of the electricity that we use is night rate. In this context the night rate 'service charge' is insignificant.

Regards

Olddog

P.S. What supplier do you use that charges 20c/kWhr ?

I measured the electricity my bread maker uses for the type of bread I always make: 0.67 kWh (0.13 kWh of this is used for preheating and kneading).

Result: 1525 g of whole-wheat bread

 

[olddog]

I see that Lidl have included their breadmaker in the 'specials' starting next thursday

£29.99 in N.I. , not certain what ROI price will be

 

[dereko1969]

€39.99 according to their email, not exactly a great exchange rate used with the different VAT rates i'd have thought it should be closer to €35.99

 

[D2WW]

I have a Panasonic and love it. I'd suggest buying a model with a nut dispenser as this will automatically drop your nuts/fruit in during the process.

+1. We have the same model for nearly two years and still used all the time. The other big advantage we found is that before milk and bread were always the things we ran out off most regularly, now it's just milk. So, that's all a lot of saved trips to the shops over the last two years.

 

[canicemcavoy]

We're on a low-carb diet these days so haven't been using our machine as much as usual, but they are worth it. It's great just making up your own recipes for bread, such as chucking some olives and sundried tomatoes in.

 

[moloney2]

Any one have any idea what the gluten-free bread is like from the lidl breadmaker?? Husband just arrived home with one and am curious about this program as need to be wheatfree in my baking.
Best wishes
moloney2

 

[gooner]

The wife got the one in Lidl Today.I think it's a silvercrest product according to the ad. Already have some of their mixes, so will post here how it goes for us with the mix an hopefully try a recipe also.Anyone got a good one for nice plain white bread that is like the shop ones,but of course better if you know what I mean!!

 

[gooner]

How did you get on Moloney2?

We got one too.I have no experience of breadmakers.It's a Silvercrest and on the box it states that it is suitable for Lidl bread mixes.It even has a page on the bread mixes,but only tells you the mix to use and the finished bread weight.It doesn't tell you what baking or browning/crust setting to use.I set it at basic and dark browning,as it said to use dark on the bread mix.The crust turned out too hard,but the bread was nice.Guess I need to tinker with the browning setting.It seems to be pretty well build and has a reorder sheet for the baking tin and dough paddles,which you send to an Irish address.3 year warranty,so that should keep things right.If I get 3 years for €40 then I will be happy.

I would like to try a recipe from scratch for white sandwich type bread (the type the kids will eat).Does anyone have a nice tasty recipe for a breadmaker that works well?

 

[olddog]

Please dont judge you breadmaker from the result of a Lidl breadmix. Many of these breadmixes are very unpleasant

http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=88791&highlight=lidl+breadmixes

All you need for your bread maker to make bread is yeast ( dried or live ), strong flour ( white, brown, rye, spelt or what ever you fancy ), butter ( or veg oil ), water ( or sometimes milk ) and a little salt.

Also the proportions of flour to liquid ( water / milk ) are critical. If you dont have one, buy a precision ( +/- 1 gm ) scales. - I got a -Lidl - one for under E15.

I presume the breadmaker comes with a recipe book. If it does not, Panasonic have a downloadable one for theirs that will give you some ideas.

 

[gooner]

Please dont judge you breadmaker from the result of a Lidl breadmix. Many of these breadmixes are very unpleasant

http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=88791&highlight=lidl+breadmixes

All you need for your bread maker to make bread is yeast ( dried or live ), strong flour ( white, brown, rye, spelt or what ever you fancy ), butter ( or veg oil ), water ( or sometimes milk ) and a little salt.

Also the proportions of flour to liquid ( water / milk ) are critical. If you dont have one, buy a precision ( +/- 1 gm ) scales. - I got a -Lidl - one for under E15.

I presume the breadmaker comes with a recipe book. If it does not, Panasonic have a downloadable one for theirs that will give you some ideas.

Thanks for that.I used the Lidl one to test out the bread maker.I have made their mixes a few times in the oven and I agree that some are not all that great, but some are quite nice.I can't remember which ones of hand,as the packs used to be in German,but now they are in English.There is a recipe book with it,so will give that a bash.Do you have a white (sandwich) recipe that you use that works really well,something the kids would like.I want to convert them from the white sliced shop bread.Maybe you could post a link.Many thanks.

 

[olddog]

..........I want to convert them from the white sliced shop bread.Maybe you could post a link........

I dont do white myself so no help to you. A google search will pull up lots of suggestions.

Here is a Panasonic link :

[broken link removed]

 

[LouisCribben]

I got the lidl silvercrest model a year ago.
I haven't bought a single loaf of bread since.

It takes no time to mix the ingrediants (about 30 seconds for me to mix 500 grams of flour, 5g salt, 30g olive oil, 320ml water, and 7 grams of yeast, press the on button.

My machine has made about 150 breads so far, works well, good results.

Someone said to use "strong bread flour".
I found out recently that plain flour produces great results too.
Plain flour is about 1/3 the price as strong flour. It's got a bit less gluten, but it rises just as well.

Another tip, for people who are really hard up.
You don't need a full 7 gram pack of yeast.

You can make a 7 gram pack of yeast last for 2 or 3 loaves by the following technique (if you are not in a hurry)

Put 2 grams of yeast into the machine instead of 7 (along with all the other ingredients).
Turn on the machine for about 2 minutes (allowing a little mixing to happen).
Turn off the machine.
Turn on the machine again and program the bread to finish 8 hours later.

This gives the 2 grams of yeast time to multiply, in a similar manner to sourdough, the resulting bread will taste a bit better too. As yeast likes warm conditions, start with hot water.

A lot of people were talking about the energy costs in making a loaf. Bread machines are extremely energy efficient compared to an oven.
I can make a 500g bread for not much more than 1/2 a kilowatt, around 10 cents.

 

[olddog]

................
Someone said to use "strong bread flour".
I found out recently that plain flour produces great results too. .

Doesnt work for me but then I'm tricking around with rye flour and stuff so it might matter a bit more. (BTW IIRC strong white flour in N.I. is circa £0.70 - £1.30 for a 1.5kg bag )

................ Another tip, for people who are really hard up.
You don't need a full 7 gram pack of yeast...... .

If you find yourself in N.I. yeast is sold in packets / tins of 100+ gm for around a pound - one lasts several months if stored in the fridge. Also some bakeries will sell live yeast on polite request

Regards

( crusty ) Olddog

 

[moloney2]

Just got a taste of the glutenfree bread from the lidl breadmaker and I love it!! Just like a good homemade brown bread, moist on the inside and crusty on the outside. I used organic wholegrain spelt flour from doves farm, olive oil, soy milk and sunflower seeds and just followed the recipe that came with the breadmaker. I cannot wait to get the white spelt flour and try the other bread recipes as well as pretzels!!!The machine was trouble free and easy to clean.
Best wishes
moloney2

 

[olddog]

Just got a taste of the glutenfree bread from the lidl breadmaker and I love it!! Just like a good homemade brown bread, moist on the inside and crusty on the outside. I used organic wholegrain spelt flour from doves farm, olive oil, soy milk and sunflower seeds and just followed the recipe that came with the breadmaker. I cannot wait to get the white spelt flour and try the other bread recipes as well as pretzels!!!The machine was trouble free and easy to clean.
Best wishes
moloney2

Well done,

I'm about to set up a mixture of white, brown, spelt and rye with some caraway & molasses to run tonight.

Where do you buy white spelt flour ?

Regards

( crusty ) Olddog

 

[newirishman]

I bought the cheapest breadmaker I could find in Curry's or something like that, for 29.90 if I remember right.
Using it for making bread, but mainly for making dough (for the home made pizza and pasta) - usually every fortnight, for the last three years. Not a single issue with it.
Makes perfect bread up to 750gram, has timer and what not. I don't think going for a more expensive brand does make sense.

 

[moloney2]

The white spelt flour that I use is from doves farm and once I got it at Tesco and other times from a health food shop. I think as you are in N.I. you might be able to order direct from the company. Would love it if you would pm me with your recipe if it works. I mainly use the white spelt flour for pastry as it makes the best wheatfree pastry- no-one can tell its not made from normal flour. Good luck with the bread and may the yeast be with you!!
best wishes
moloney2