mosfet's Full Review: Panasonic SD-YD250 Bread Machine
Panasonic SD-YD250 bread machine.
We are cooks, bread makers and big bread eaters and we have owned many bread machines over the years. More importantly, we know what a good loaf of bread looks, feels and tastes like.
The Achilles’ heal of bread machines is the blade bearing assembly, here’s why:
First the bearing and seals have to stand up to temperature adequate to cook bread.
The blade turns relatively slowly but from normal wear the seals that keep moisture and foreign particles out of the bushings eventually leak contaminating the lubricant and also allowing it to escape through the compromised seals. This causes bushing wear which eventually leads to complete failure of the turning assembly. Usually the bushings will squeak for some time before the assembly seizes completely.
Panasonic, to their credit, has a note in their manual and a part number for the blade assembly.
The first loaf of bread from the SD-YD250, made with 100% whole wheat, came out of the Panasonic five hours after putting in the ingredients. The crumb was good as was the crust. This bread was as light as white bread, aside from the crust which was understandably thicker and heavier as it should be. Whole wheat is the yardstick of a good machine as it is the most difficult to get right. The grain is coarser, less refined and heavier then white.
For the first hour, a full hour, the ingredients sit in the machine acclimating to a common temperature. The loaf takes longer to make but you can not rush good bread and I applaud Panasonic for adding this step. I also like the fact that there is a separate yeast cup and that the water goes on top of the flour and not in the pan underneath it. The pan goes in easily and self locks from the motion of the blade. The pan itself is cast and not pressure formed, more evidence of a better quality machine. There is no window to disturb the temperature controlled environment and one is simply not necessary. More kudos to Panasonic.
The ‘XL’ loaf is about two pounds, with an ‘L’ and a ‘M’ for medium giving the user three loaf sizes. There are also three crust settings, dark, medium and light. It has a dough setting, like most machines, as well as the rest of the standard features.
The controls are self explanatory, easy to use and understand. The machine cleans easily and the manual is to the point.
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