Everyone loves freshly baked bread. Making bread at home by hand can be a complicated, time-consuming and tricky process, so a bread making machine is the answer. What should you look for when choosing one? The following guide will help you.

Guide to choosing a bread making machine

1. Price

The more expensive models have multi recipe modes or functions so choose one according to your practical needs.

2. Capacity

Commercially available bread making machines can produce around 500g of bread dough for 2 to 4 persons. If you have a large family or bake in large quantities, consider one with a 1.5-2kg capacity. Of course, the bread maker itself would also be larger in size.

3. Auto dispensing feature

Bread making requires ingredients such as yeast to be added which can be tricky if the machine is not able to do this automatically. A bread making machine equipped with auto dispensing function has a dedicated yeast box which automatically adds the yeast during the operation for more successful bread making results.

4. Recipe menu

In addition to making bread, the bread making machine may also have built-in recipe modes for making rice dough, bread dough and other types. For those who want to make different breads in one machine, choose a model that offers more recipe modes.

5. Operating volume

Be aware of the noise level. A bread maker produces more noise when stirring ingredients and kneading the dough so if you are using a pre-set mode, check how long it takes, to avoid too much disturbance. Some models are suitable for operation at night because of their low operating noise (below 60dB).

Usage tips

1. Always measure the amount of ingredients before putting them into the bread maker. Never put more than the capacity of the machine as this will affect the operation.

2. Some models are equipped with a transparent window allowing you to check the progress of the bread, but this can cause heat loss, resulting in uneven colours on freshly baked bread. Cover the transparent window with aluminum foil to resolve this.

3. Freshly baked bread is very soft, so it is advisable to cut the bread horizontally to prevent the shape deforming.

4. The bread maker should be cleaned immediately after use while the machine and yeast box should be cleaned regularly to ensure optimum performance.