Bread makers - yes or no?

[bendmeoverbackwards]

Following on from the soup maker thread - if you have a breadmaker and is it worth it?

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MNHQ

Agree with PPs, it has to be a Panasonic.

Yes. We have a Panasonic. Still going strong after ten years.

Another Panasonic owner here, and I wouldn’t be without it. Waking up in the morning to freshly baked bread is fabulous.

I bought one from fb market place in the first lock down used it a couple of times for bread but always find it hard to slice and store. I frequently make pizza dough and Chelsea buns though

I just didn't like the bread from ours - even wholemeal just seemed to be lacking in something (even with vit c tablets crushed in). Cakes came out of it well, but it was too big and cumbersome and I got rid of it.

I use my kitchenaid and a dough hook these days and it's far more successful.... and versatile.

How much space does the Panasonic one take up? Don’t think we’ve got much cupboard space left!

Mine’s a Morphy Richards but they are all pretty much the same size. Here it is with a wine glass for scale!

Yes to bread maker! We make the smallest loaf - but make one every day. It does us perfectly. Eight slices plus two crusts.
It was £50 from Amazon. Morphy Richards.
My friend has the more expensive Panasonic type, but she’s jealous of my small loaf - as I can justify making fresh every day. Total blessing during lock down. After nice months off I STILL get excited for lunchtime.
(The rise, when you set it to cook overnight to be ready for 6am) is not as good but hey ho.
Paddle does very little damage - and at that only to one slice.
You get used to slicing! Let it cool before you try!

I make about 10 loaves a week in my Panasonic. Hardly needs cleaning. Just a quick wipe with kitchen paper, then it's good to go.

We didn't use ours much. And after a few disappointing loaves, gave it away. Main gripes were paddle hole in the bottom, bread must be eaten within a day (that's quite a lot of bread) and carving even slices was impossible. It wasn't worth it to only make our own bread, shop bought pre sliced loaves are so much easier.
I do love homemade bread though and make the odd crusty loaf when making a soup or stew.

We have a Panasonic, it is fairly large so I hide it in a cupboard when not in use.

Makes amazing bread, my kids will only eat the crusts on this bread. V easy to use, lots of options (although we just make the basic loaf). I've never felt the need to clean it, just give the bread pan a wipe with a cloth.

The smell of the delicious yeasty bread baking when you wake up in the morning is worth it alone, heavenly...off to make a loaf now tbh

P.s our loaves last a few days in a bread bin, not that they usually stick around that long. I've never had a problem with them going stale

We’ve had ours for about 15 years, use it probably three times a week as we get through a lot of bread. Sooo much nicer than the bread we’d have to constantly buy from the corner shop. Yet another Panasonic!

We do white, brown, granary, fruit loaf, and pizza dough in it. Often do variations on the brown (nuts, seeds, use apple juice instead of just water).

Finally something went wrong with the motor a couple of months ago, but we got a spare part for a fiver, fixed it, and it’s fine again. Love it.

Really not hard to clean - it’s got a non stick surface so pretty easy.

Used mine regularly for years and years (Panasonic) and it was great.

Due to lockdown boredom I have started making bread by hand now and that's even better, but bread maker bread is much better than bought.

Yes. Has to be a Panasonic though - other brands just don't compare.

I've not bought shop bread since I got my first Panasonic in 2008! We replaced the original one about 18 months ago so they have a good lifespan.

Yep. Use mine all the time. They are quite chunky appliances though, do take up a fair bit of room.

Right looks like a Panasonic then! Not cheap are they?

I liked being able to put it on overnight but in the end it took up too much space and it was never as good as what I could bake in the oven. I now have an easy no knead recipe for when I need something fast and a couple of others for when I have a little more time, and gave the bread maker away.

A couple of years ago we were given a Panasonic breadmaker that's probably about 20 years old and we have only just started using it.

The first loaf was small and underwhelming but it was made with a packet mix. Our 2nd attempt was made with our own mix and was much better. We had a bit left over so I made some croutons with it and had them with soup.

I have just put some more mix into it and put it on a timer so it's ready for 7a.m. and now I'm looking forward to morning for the first time ever!

Look for second hand if you can. Mine was £5! After a few years we bought a new bread pan for it (£80!) but even then a lit cheaper than a new one.

Anyone got this one? Think it’s the cheapest I can find

www.argos.co.uk/product/4009186?istCompanyId=a74d8886-5df9-4baa-b776-166b3bf9111c&istFeedId=30f62ea9-9626-4cac-97c8-9ff3921f8558&istItemId=ixilqlirq&istBid=t&&cmpid=GS001&_$ja=tsid:59157%7Cacid:598-923-9094%7Ccid:9568021390%7Cagid:98508738856%7Ctid:pla-889624023119%7Ccrid:423285393779%7Cnw:g%7Crnd:4873986123198372366%7Cdvc:m%7Cadp:%7Cmt:%7Cloc:9045971&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9568021390&utm_term=4009186&utm_content=shopping&utm_custom1=98508738856&utm_custom2=598-923-9094&gclid=CjwKCAiAgJWABhArEiwAmNVTB5RO3AHH6mlbaRTE8mwXuhIuX4KjEIxv7k2A0hab7FE-HJOwRZnmfxoCSIcQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Loved mine

It turned out great loaves whether using packet mixes or not. Plus some amazing recipes in the book that came with it

Chuck it all in, out the timer on. Wake up the freshly made bread...what's not to love!!

It's the only 'gizmo' that's been used! Everything else was rehomed!!

Sadly I'm diabetic and & I control it through diet & exercise (no medication) - diet is low carb, so NO bread 😢

I don't think all bread makers are created equal though. My mum had one and it was shite, so she has mine now & loves it too!!

I got mine secondhand on Facebook for £10. It's a Panasonic. You've got control over the ingredients and the bread is good. The rapid bake programme seems to give better results than the longer one. I've made hot cross bun dough in it and got fantastic results.