Goldilocks Notes: This tiplet applies to ALL home bread machines.
– If your dough is too wet, it will often result in a “collapsed” (concave) Top Often with spots of raw or wet dough. Short Explanation: too much liquid creates larger weak steam pockets during the baking process. When as the bread cools and the steam evaporated, the top is no longer supported and so collapses. The other issue with over hydration is spots or gobs raw uncooked dough throughout. Sometimes simple longer bake times can solve the problem.
– If your dough is too dry, it will often result in failure to rise, crumbly messes, and in a best case scenario, something that may be possible to use for croutons, or bread crumbs. Worst case scenario: brick suitable for door stops.
– In the third image, “Just Right – Almost ” The hydration looks good, but the sides have not been “scraped” down or back into the dough. This may/often result in “white flour” spots on your bread. Not the end of the world, but easily avoided.
-Yes, sometimes you do have to open the top. The trick to opening is to (a) open as early in the process as possible, and since the touch touch test is best done just after the first (rather brief) Mix & Rest – easily solved. -The second trick is to CLOSE the lid if your are doing something that takes longer, like removing a paddle, or adding a flavoring swirl. The lid should only be open long enough to remove or replace the pan. -When the paddle is removed, to compensate for the possible loss of heat, I do leave it in the machine on the warm cycle longer than usual.
Your choice, Too Wet-Collapses, Too Dry-Doorstops, or Cut Me A Slice, causes it’s “just right”
Image courtesy of the Secura manual for MBF-016.
Needs to be combined with: Bread Dense or Dry or Just Right https://wheatcarr.com/2025/01/20/bread-too-dense/
Note I have no affiliation of any type other than Butterfly Meadow is on my personal “worth considering” list.
For Nerdy Bread Machine User Entertainment. Probably not something most should try at home and definitely not before the end of your warranty… And of course we can all appreciate the Cat Comments
It no secret the search is on for the “final” Bread Machine. But more about that another time.
This Tiplet if NOT an affiliate link, it is not an endorsement of the machine cause I don’t own one and have never borrowed to try one = BUT DAMN – I do miss when all the makers wrote such helpful and generally useful manuals and support materials.
This is link to a English/French PDF version, next to impossible to find on their website (as is the machine shown as sold out for quite awhile) It downloads an approximately 7.2 mg pdf file.
Yes, some of it is strictly Breville but there is so much more and that includes enough info that I suspect one could convert almost any of their recipes to another machine using the tried and true “Stare, Compare and Dare” Method.
A lot to take in all at one time even for an experienced machine user – but I will have to send Breville a thank you note for such a great reference and encouragement to make the unit available again, cause I think this one could be the one “till death do us part”
For those enjoy the use of a bread machine, we have all contemplated the esthetic AND practical annoyance of a chunk missing from the bottom of the loaf caused by the panel which kneads the dough when left in during baking.
In most cases when paddle is removed the number 4 example would be what we hope for, deforming only a single slice. To be honest, over the last several decades I have seen all of these and worse. Like when it looked like number 4 until one removed the paddle in a dark and tough crust and looked more like number 6 on steriods
Whether using my wonderful recently “retired” 1998 vintage WestBend Bread maker or Westy’s replacement a Hamilton Beach Pioneer Woman Bread & Artisan Dough recently named Fiona because well that is her name “Fiona Floral” And, pretty much any other Bread & Dough Maker, there is the esthetic and practical annoyance of a chunk missing from the bottom of the loaf caused by the panel which kneads the dough.
There are some that the paddles “fold” down, but that seems to have other issues and not something I have experienced. And, frankly, I am not the type to hyperventilate if I don’t happen to be around to execute any of the fixes – this is just about understanding my options. If you are lucky, it really only effect one slice, but usually at least 2 and often enough to annoy me 3 slices If a few slices are only suitable for toasting or other non-sandwich options, the world will not end.
There is a tiplet often repeated: Open the machine at the beginning (or during) the 2nd rise. dump the dough either into a bowl or onto a dinner plate, remove the paddle and quickly replace the dough ball into the machine. IF you do this, it must be done quickly and you need to remember to close the lid while removing the paddle. You would be surprised how much leaving the top open lowers the temperature inside.
This is also a good time to use another of my ideas that “worked for me”. Dividing the loaf. (planned as part of my next experiment this weekend.)
Now assuming this is just a normal sized recipe, meaning with the bounds of maximum loaf size – in my case both machines a 2 lb loaf, Most days I can accomplish this 10 second procedure without a hitch. Then there are the bad days when we need bread, but my hands and wrists are not happy.
It has been my experience that if it takes more than ten seconds from start to finish, the combination of shorter 2nd rise and lose of proper proofing temp leads to a less than lovely loaf – even to deflated and dense for those who loved their Arnolds Brick Oven Bread as a child (or in the case of the engineer in the other room as an adult. It was close to a Pan De Mie, and a wonderful white toasting bread. particularly suitable for grill cheese 2. It took nearly a year for me to “get it right”in Westy and not yet in Fiona
This is not a perfect solution, but is seems to avoid many of the pit falls, loss of temperature is still and issue, so perhaps the solution lies in this quote from the manual….
Control Panel (cont.) POWER INTERRUPTION In event of a power outage, the process of making bread will continue automatically within 7 minutes. If dough has started rising, discard ingredients in bread pan and start over. If dough has not entered rising phase, you can press START button to continue cycle from beginning. I am hoping that the wording really means, if power interruption is less than 7 mins it will restart from SAME place If over 7 minutes, well guess this will be a day when you bake dough outside the machine – so buns and baguettes it is.
Question, Corrections, Your thoughts and topic related comments all welcomed.
1 The Cooks Info https://www.cooksinfo.com/bread-machines#The_hole_issue 2 Tiplet: A touch of garlic or horseradish or jalapeno powder or (my preferred) granuals on the INSIDE of your bread so it warms but does not burn will be life changing.
