Do you own a bread machine? I know how a little help will come extremely in handy when you’re using a bread machine for the first few times. In fact, some of us veterans often scout for tips too! Here are my bread machine tips to help make your bread making experience more enjoyable and simpler. These are for beginners!
Pay attention to the order you pour the ingredients into the bread machine. This is a crucial aspect that some new users fail to make note of. Most, if not all, bread machines require you to start with the liquids and then put the dry ingredients on top. More often than not, the last thing that needs to be added is the yeast.
In the flour mound, make a little hollow where you put the yeast. This goes a long way in ensuring that the yeast doesn’t mix with the liquid until the machine begins to do its thing.
Do you know what your bread machine’s capacity is? Many bread makers come with settings for one to two-pound loaves. Some machines come with a fixed-size loaf. Before you start baking a loaf, make sure you know what size you’re baking, this will help you scale your recipes correctly.
The manual that comes with the bread machine is a great way of determining the capacity of your machine. You may also check it out on the Internet. Usually, a one pound machine handles approximately two cups of flours. The one and half pound loaf requires about three cups of flour while the two pound loaf needs four cups.
After five to ten minutes into the dough making cycle, open the lid of the machine. Don’t worry about disturbing the process, just open it up and check. See if the dough appears dry. If it is, add some more water – measuring one tablespoon at a time.
If your dough seems too watery, it’s advisable to add a pinch of flour. Do this sparingly until you see a nicely formed ball. The bread may taste okay with the wrong texture, but it will not be as beautiful as you would have expected.
An important tip is to get a good bread machine that kneads dough well, and read more bread maker reviews before you buy one.
