Best Panasonic Bread Makers

This machine is so easy to use. I was a total newbie to baking, but even my first loaf came out perfectly golden and fluffy inside. Since then, I’ve… Read more

tried the rye setting and even the dough setting for homemade pizza nights. It handles everything like a champ.

I love that I can throw in the ingredients the night before and wake up to the smell of fresh bread in the morning. It’s like living in a bakery.

Best thing since, well sliced bread – I have had two other bread machines in the past and hated both of them with a passion. One big thing I hated was the fact that the loaves always came… Read more

out with really pale crusts no matter what setting, and the other thing was that the blade always got stuck in the loaf (which led to our last machine becoming redundant, as I threw a loaf out with the blades, oopps).

Once the panic buying hit our area at the start of the pandemic we were unable to buy any types of bread from any of our local shops at all, and so the research commenced into making bread at home. I searched for hours on what would be our best option.

Take one, Bread by hand. Take two, take three urrggh I have had enough, I am done with this we don't need bread right?

So, hours of reading reviews on what bread machines were available (which were nil) and between the ones people were selling on Ebay that sold for more used then brand new, I had almost given up. Until I found one on Amazon, behold the Panasonic SD-ZB2512. Oh my I was worried about how excited I was to have it finally delivered, on unboxing and setting it up for the first time I was impressed on how very sleek, modern and functional the machine was.

Flash forward to present times, I have now had the pure pleasure of using this machine weekly for over a year and I am still impressed at the quality of the bread this little tacker puts out. We make bread, pizza dough, rustic scones, cakes, sourdough starter, sourdough and other base doughs. This machine has never has never let me down and has proven itself to be a solid investment.

PROS - - beautiful loaves with perfect density and crusts - lots of programs to make multiple breads, doughs and other sweet treats - looks good - easy to use - easy to clean - blade stay in the bucket (pan) - bucket is super easy to clean - Yeast dispenser allows the yeast to be added at the perfect time - comes with easy to follow recipes - Comes with measuring spoons and water / sourdough start containers

CONS- - Is quite large - is getting up there in price - I dislike how some yeast can become lodged around the control panel (does not effect use, just annoying) - occasionally it scare me when it releases the yeast, as it clicks quite loudly

Don’t waste your money – I am used to bread making as I often make my own bread. I thought this Panasonic with fruit and nut dispenser would be a great time saver for when… Read more

guests come over. I bought it on 14/4/2023 for $279. Used only intermittently (when guests over) and stored carefully. It failed 20 months later on the first week of December 2024. The bread came out misshapen and flat. It didn’t rise. The yeast and ingredients all fresh and in date. I used the supplied measuring tools and an accurate kitchen scale for flour. I tried 4 more loaves with different settings, different flour types and recipes (from the included booklet). Abject failure. Same issue. Really disappointed. Don’t waste your money on this breadmaker. It made nice bread when working but a breadmaker should last longer than 20 months of intermittent use. Conversely, I bought a family member the KMART Breadmaker as a gift at the same time as I bought this Panasonic (at a significantly cheaper price of well under $100) and it is still working well.

I use this 3-4 times a week and love it, but what I love more is knowing my family is eating healthy bread that I know exactly what's inside. I've… Read more

tried many of the recipes but what I love most is the Basic Menu 1 or 2 and I make the Light, Medium sized loaf (the smallest loaf) or it is too high for my toaster. I strictly follow the recipe for the amount of flour and water but add a little more powdered milk, sugar, butter and yeast. It takes less than 3 minutes to put on a loaf.

I quickly learnt that the most important ratio is flour to water. I always weigh my flour.

I ONLY use organic flour, if you are in Australia you can buy this: https://goodness.com.au

Because the bread is not loaded with preservatives etc it doesn't last as long (2-3 days in the summer), which is not a problem when making smaller loaves and it's so easy to make more.

There's a bit of a fight for the crust when it first comes out of the machine, so crispy, we usually dont wait for the bread to cool down lol, too eager. I always place it on a drying rack with a net over, letting the natural air cool the bread.

I often set the bread to make fresh overnight and we wake in the morning to the smell of fresh bread for lunches wafting through the house. You set the timer to how many hours before you want your bread to finish eg 10pm at night is 9hrs for 7am fresh bread (Basic Menu 1).

Never leave the bread in the machine when it's finished or it goes a bit soft/soggy and shrinks. I've had a fail when I forgot to put back the mixer at the bottom of the basin; I've had a fail when this wasn't cleaned properly of leftover baked bread and then failed to turn and mix properly. I've also had many fails when I've forgotten the yeast.

I love the Dough (Soft Rolls / Baps) Recipe, I've learned to cut these into a minimum of 10 rolls as they rise really well and 8 is too big.

My husband makes his Pizza bases, so much easier for him. Pizza are his 'Italian' speciality.

After baking, I've learnt to wrap my tea towel (as shown in my pics) to avoid burns (I've had a few lol) and I immediately drench the tub in cold water, wash the mixer and put back in the machine to dry.

I've had my machine for nearly 2 years, I don't think it has saved me any money, but the bread is delicious and it has become the most important piece of equipment in my kitchen.

Crusty artisan bread yes, but not much flexibility for the premium price – Initially I was amazed at this machine, it definitely ticks the 'Artisan bread' box, perfectly in fact. But over time you realise, with bread,… Read more

variety is the key. Sometimes you just want a normal shaped loaf. Sometimes you don't want a super crusty ball of bread. After a while you want to modify the settings to your liking (you can't). Sometimes you want to set an 8 hour timer and have the seeds, raisins and nuts dispense into the dough automatically at 3am (you can only put the timer on plain bread). Yes it has other settings like pizza, dough and jam, but I find these never turn out as good as other machines (that are cheaper) or hand making. So in summary, if you only love artisan bread and are willing to pay the premium price, this machine is magical, if you want all types of normal bread and dough, then there are other models that are better at this (and cheaper).