Bread makers out of stock everywhere?

[PerhapsaSillyQuestion]

So after several years I decided to buy a bread maker but :I can't. They are all out of stock?
What the dilly is going on!

Yes please share a straightforward recipe @CurlewKate
I have a Kenwood chef I bought last year just to make bread but still not used it!

Charity shops have them. There's a lovely one beside me that has one for £5.

I have one gathering dust on top of the kitchen cupboards.

I am also married to a former master baker!

How strange.

I do

500g bread flour
7g yeast
1/2 teaspoon of salt (you could do a teaspoon but did this when my children were babies and stuck with it!)

300-325ml water with a slug of extra virgin olive oil

Dry ingredients in the bowl with dough hook, slowly drizzle in the liquid until it comes together.

Timer on for 5 mins then wait for it to double in size

Shake into rolls, loaf, plait anything you fancy!

Leave to rise again and bake

Rolls are about 15-20 mins 220
Loaf 25-30 mins 180

I keep mine in the same bowl I've kneaded it in to rise the first time. I don't bother oiling it

I can definately recommend the Panasonic. Ours has been going for years and years. Though we don't use all the fancy options, just a regular loaf twice a week.

We got our first machine in 2000, and we’ve worn out about five since then! I use it every day.

I got my Panasonic one on Facebook marketplace, it had barely been used and was only £30! There were a few on there that were brand new still in packaging!

After 5yrs of constant use - that’s 3 times a fortnight roughly - my Panasonic SD-2501 wasn’t working right - sunken and damp - I checked that the motor was working and that the heating element was working by selecting a couple of different programs so I think it’s a temperature sensor that’s not working - I know there is one to measure the ambient temperature as that is used to adjust the rise and bake times (that’s why there is a range of times for these in the manual and not one direction exact time) so I’m hoping I can fix it myself so I’m hanging on to it however I wanted another straight away - I went to John Lewis for the 2 year extended warranty but was unimpressed by the build quality of the newer Panasonics that cost £200 so left it and decided to look on eBay - with them being large I knew they would probably be pick up only (which immediately limits how many people are interested to bid on them) - I found the exact same model and hours drive away and made the only bid on it and bought it for £40 - as I’d hoped and guessed it was almost as new and unused - a lot of people don’t take to using one and they do take up a lot of space if your kitchen is tiny - it’s working perfectly and was sorted out within a couple of days and I’m hoping I can fix my other one myself - I’ll gamble and try and buy a thermocouple/temperature sensor to see it that fixes it - fundamentally they are pretty simple devices and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the main processor board. So try eBay - I’ve seen as new - old models like mine up for about £50.

Old (broken but hopefully fixable) and new (as new from eBay) SD-2501 (seed dispenser)

This "no knead" bread is fantastic! www.gimmesomeoven.com/no-knead-bread/

I am disappointed mine only lasted 5 years as my sisters been using her Panasonic (in France) for 20 years! I’d still highly recommend the Panasonic - it’s produced great bread reliably… I’m optimistic I can fix it.

He just did it himself and baked it in the oven in a le creuset oven dish! No bread maker

@CurlewKate thank you for the recipe! Going to try it tonight!

I reckon the factories have switched over from manufacturing bread makers, and are now churning out air fryers as fast as they can instead.

I wonder if they were stuck on the container ships but I was waiting three months for one and they are still not in stock at Lakeland from November.

Until very recently, Argos used to sell their own brand breadmakers at reasonable cost. Now they only sell other brand names and the prices have SHOT up!

I’ve got the Panasonic with the seed deposit thing - I’ve had it for 15 years and it’s still going strong. I love it and I’ve used it so much over the years. It’s got a timer so you can wake up to the smell of freshly baked bread. Love it.

I bought a high-spec Panasonic from facebook Marketplace for £30.

The bread's not great tbh, there's no crust to speak of. am I doing something wrong?

It's quite possible it's on marketplace because it's faulty - that doesn't mean it doesn't work at all - the paddle might mix the ingredients and the heating element may work but if one of the temperature measuring probes isn't working then it may not be baking for the correct time or at the right temperature. Fundamentally, they are simple devices - and worth fixing as the new Panasonics I looked a few months ago are around £200 in John Lewis - and not as well made (I thought) as the older machines from 5 years ago.

If you've not used one before - you do have to put the ingredients in - in the order they are presented in the instructions - yeast first, then flour, then salt/sugar/butter/oil, etc then water - you can't just throw them in in any order as I found the first time I used mine - I think I put the yeast in last.