If you like bread, then you're going to love having a bread machine! With all the styles and price ranges out there, you are sure to find one to fit your needs and budget.
Bread machines have been around for a while, but for commercial purposes. It took until the 1980s for some new start-up companies to realize that a household model could sell like hotcakes. And so, the residential bread machine was born and hit store shelves all over. They disappeared quickly from these shelves even with prices averaging in the hundreds of dollars.
It took about ten years for the big name kitchen retailers to produce their own bread machines, but when they finally brought these newer models to market, prices had dropped to under $100 and they were lighter, tinier, and quieter. Even with these price reductions, options and styles increased.
Bread machines originally produced only round loaves of bread simply because the ingredients needed to be mixed and it was impossible to put a square mixing pan in and expect decent results. Although a bit awkward for sandwiches and the like, the bread nevertheless rivaled what grandma used to turn out by hand.
Today bread machines are able to produce square and rectangular loaves although the original design is still more practical and the end result is more consistent. The square loaves tend to have uncooked or burned edges, or even sections that were not mixed correctly at the beginning of the cycle.
Bread machines don't just make bread, either! Most of them have settings for pizza dough, bagel dough, and various stop and start manually controlled switches that allow you to mix the dough but remove it at various times to add ingredients or split the dough into smaller sections.
If you have ever tried to make your own home made bread, you'll see right away how much time and effort these machines save while still producing equal or better bread. They are set up to standardize mixing times, raising times, and kneading times. If you have ten minutes to add the ingredients, and if you know how to push a button, you already know how to use a bread machine.
Before making a decision on which one to bring home, look at it to see how easy it is to keep clean. When mixing begins, flour tends to get all over the place as does any liquid ingredients. Check out the machinery to see which parts are removable and washable. Also check to see if the heating coils are protected at all - these are fragile and difficult to clean at all costs.
If nothing else, try to find a machine with a completely removable cover that is dishwasher safe. Dough can easily get burned onto this, making cleaning a pain. Also try to find a machine with some sort of internal guards that can be removed for cleaning.
Bread machines have been around for a while, but for commercial purposes. It took until the 1980s for some new start-up companies to realize that a household model could sell like hotcakes. And so, the residential bread machine was born and hit store shelves all over. They disappeared quickly from these shelves even with prices averaging in the hundreds of dollars.
It took about ten years for the big name kitchen retailers to produce their own bread machines, but when they finally brought these newer models to market, prices had dropped to under $100 and they were lighter, tinier, and quieter. Even with these price reductions, options and styles increased.
Bread machines originally produced only round loaves of bread simply because the ingredients needed to be mixed and it was impossible to put a square mixing pan in and expect decent results. Although a bit awkward for sandwiches and the like, the bread nevertheless rivaled what grandma used to turn out by hand.
Today bread machines are able to produce square and rectangular loaves although the original design is still more practical and the end result is more consistent. The square loaves tend to have uncooked or burned edges, or even sections that were not mixed correctly at the beginning of the cycle.
Bread machines don't just make bread, either! Most of them have settings for pizza dough, bagel dough, and various stop and start manually controlled switches that allow you to mix the dough but remove it at various times to add ingredients or split the dough into smaller sections.
If you have ever tried to make your own home made bread, you'll see right away how much time and effort these machines save while still producing equal or better bread. They are set up to standardize mixing times, raising times, and kneading times. If you have ten minutes to add the ingredients, and if you know how to push a button, you already know how to use a bread machine.
Before making a decision on which one to bring home, look at it to see how easy it is to keep clean. When mixing begins, flour tends to get all over the place as does any liquid ingredients. Check out the machinery to see which parts are removable and washable. Also check to see if the heating coils are protected at all - these are fragile and difficult to clean at all costs.
If nothing else, try to find a machine with a completely removable cover that is dishwasher safe. Dough can easily get burned onto this, making cleaning a pain. Also try to find a machine with some sort of internal guards that can be removed for cleaning.
About the Author:
John McKain makes the tastiest bread in his restaurant. He tried many best bread machines and he can tell you how to pick the best one. He wrote bread machines reviews in his best bread machine blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment