I Just Got a Bread Machine. Now What?
When I got my first bread machine I was hypnotized by it. I looked through the window and watched the dough going around and around. Fascinating! I couldn’t believe how good the bread smelled as it cooked. Wonderful!
At the same time, I felt a little overwhelmed. What if the recipes didn’t turn out? What should I make next? What was the best way to store the bread?
Here are some tips that will help.
Read the instruction manual.
It seems boring, but it’s important to gather some facts about your new machine. Check out what settings your bread maker has. See what order the bread machine ingredients should be added to the pan. Learn how to wash the pan.
With Zojirushi bread machines for example, you do NOT immerse the pan in water. Instead you carefully wash the inside while keeping the outside of the pan dry.
Try the recipes that come with the manual and follow the recipes.
You know the saying you have to learn to walk before you run? It’s true with your bread machine too.
At first you’ll need to follow the recipes exactly. Resist the urge to get creative with yeast, flour or to make substitutions to the recipe. People can go a little wild when they first get a bread machine.
However during this phase I do urge you to try different recipes so you can see how different types of bread turn out and you can see what you like.
If you have problems look at the troubleshooting section of your manual.
Don’t get discouraged if things don’t work out quite right. Your bread machine manual should have a list of common problems and how to handle them. If your manual doesn’t have a section like that or it doesn’t help, I’ve got a bunch of articles on troubleshooting.
Afraid that you’ll eat too much bread or that the bread won’t keep?
Not to worry. You’ll soon grow used to the presence of yummy bread in the house. Having homemade bread will become the new normal.
Also, bread freezes really well. You can read more about these issues here.
Enjoy and keep at it.
I’m not sure what I’d do without my bread machine. I make all our bread, hamburger buns, and dinner rolls.
I try new recipes all the time. Sound interesting? Sign up for my newsletter to be notified about new articles on the site.
I’m so glad to meet you Marsha. Thanks for all your help making my family the freshiest bread possible. My first loaf was pretty, but not enough salt,, huggg,, the second loaf, great and keeps getting better. With your receipts help and tips…
Thank again ,,, so glad i found you…
Thanks so much for the kind words. Please keep leaving comments and asking questions. That helps me to get better at this too. 🙂
my new bread machine has 2 dough setting one called ferment dough and other just called dough question is which do I use ..I live in asia and not able speak the local language .
I would thankful for your help John
Interesting! I’ve never heard of a fermented dough setting. What brand of machine is it?
I would guess that you’d use the plain dough setting and not the fermented one. But that’s just a guess.
Could fermented dough mean sourdough possibly?
Maybe. That’s a thought.
I have a new Russell.Hobbs bread machine. 1st loaf sunk despite following instructions to the letter & following advice, changed a couple of ingredients- 2 more sunken / big valley loaves followed. Fwd up now & going back to my old, smaller Hinari bread machine…. :(((((
Darn it! Any hopes of returning the machine?
I love my Zojirushi bread maker
Following this from the FB article. I remember moving from an Oster (easy peasy) to Zoji. I read and followed exactly and got the worst bread imaginable! Salt, sugar, etc all in little pocket clumps, no mixing, no rising. *shudders* I realized that the way I had learned with the Oster was really the way we do it by hand. Mix the liquids (room temps please) and put in machine. Then do the dry (sans yeast) in a bowl, mixing thoroughly, aka spoon sifting, and getting the mix together then spooning it (actually sprinkling it) into the bread pan. THEN a small nudge for the yeast. If I added VG (Vital Gluten) I put it in with the flour. Only failures I’ve had since then is not paying attention to barometer or forgetting yeast (yes, I’ve done that).
I think experimentation in bread baking via machine is essential. Sometimes the book is right and sometimes … well, it’s up to the baker.
And for the record, if I have failed to say so recently, Marsha, you are a Goddess-send for bakers new and old. I learn things from you I missed, or am reminded. Never too old or too young to find a kindred spirit.
Have a great 2019 and thank you for being here.
Kim, thanks so much for the kind words. I learn so much from you too! And I’m relieved that I’m not the only one that forgets the yeast sometimes. 🙂
I’m really excited about 2019. I’ve taken a class in breadmaking that’s changed my thinking about how I’ve gone about it. I need to blog about that and the dough shaping that I’ve done.
I think 2019 will be an exciting year!
I have a Zojirushi virtuoso bread machine, which I love and couldn’t live without. I just recently bought a 25Lb bag of bread flour from Costco (Ardent Mills brand). All the breads I usually make, french baguettes, naan, raisin bread are turning out very dense, and the tops are very torn is there a way to adjust my recipes for the Costco flour? Previously I was using either Gold Medal bread flour, or King Arthur’s bread flour and my loaves were perfect. Does anyone else have the same problems? I usually stick to the recipes in the instruction book.
Thanks for all your help!
How do you measure your flour. You might try weighing it instead and see if that helps.
I use the scoop and sweep method but am preparing to make the switch weighing all my ingredients. I’ve done it a few times and see the wisdom of using that method. It’s just that old habits die hard. 🙂