Making Your Own Bread - Is It Any Cheaper?

[Saag Aloo]

Say you bought a bread maker at £x and made your own bread would it be cheaper than buying a loaf from the shop?

[escargot]

Yep, it does work out cheaper long term. Provided of course, you stick to using standard ingredients (ie, flour & yeast) as opposed to those stupid packs of 'bread machine mix'.

[Saag Aloo]

escargot said:

Yep, it does work out cheaper long term. Provided of course, you stick to using standard ingredients (ie, flour & yeast) as opposed to those stupid packs of 'bread machine mix'.

Yeah definately standard ingredients not "bread machine mix" as you say. Are you speaking from experience? Any idea of how much a loaf would cost using a bread machine?

[530dTPhil]

I have been making my own bread for several years and in reality the cost saving is minimal. However, you can't put a price on freshly made bread that doesn't double for Polyfilla!
If you are going to buy a breadmaker, I suggest that you go for one with a timer so that you can choose the finishing time to ensure that you are around. It's important to remove the loaf without too much delay once the baking is complete, otherwise the loaf can become soggy if left in the oven.

[escargot]

Saag Aloo said:

escargot said:

Yep, it does work out cheaper long term. Provided of course, you stick to using standard ingredients (ie, flour & yeast) as opposed to those stupid packs of 'bread machine mix'.

Yeah definately standard ingredients not "bread machine mix" as you say. Are you speaking from experience? Any idea of how much a loaf would cost using a bread machine?

No mate, I've never worked out the figures, sufficed to say, flour & yeast are pretty cheap as base ingredients.

[okgo]

Seeing as bread is so cheap anyway, what is the advantage of doing this?

[Super Bad]

okgo said:

Seeing as bread is so cheap anyway, what is the advantage of doing this?

The taste of freshly baked bread cant be beat

[escargot]

Quite.

[lazy_b]

Mrs lazy_b persuaded me to buy a breadmaker last November, in spite of my opposition (I reckoned it would disappear into the back of the kitchen cupboard within a few weeks). It's amazing - it makes bread at least as good as the local specialist bakers, even using cheap bread flour, yeast, etc. We haven't bought any bread since then!

I worked out that it would pay for itself in less than three years, but how can you put a value on waking up to a fresh loaf of bread for breakfast?

[okgo]

escargot said:

Quite.

I know this, I paid a quid for a loaf from the supermarket today..

My question still stands..

[Shaw Tarse]

530dTPhil said:

I have been making my own bread for several years and in reality the cost saving is minimal. However, you can't put a price on freshly made bread that doesn't double for Polyfilla!
If you are going to buy a breadmaker, I suggest that you go for one with a timer so that you can choose the finishing time to ensure that you are around. It's important to remove the loaf without too much delay once the baking is complete, otherwise the loaf can become soggy if left in the oven.

Mum makes her own bread in a Panasonic, (there are "What breadmaker?" threads on PH).
She makes different flavours of bread, orders the flour online, I can find out a web address if wanted?

[Si 330]

I think it's negligible on cost saving, the problem I have
warm fresh bread gets eaten so much quicker than a loaf bought from the shops.

[Coq au Vin]

Depends on what sort of bread you are making and what you are comparing it with. Generally, it ranges from slightly cheaper to a lot cheaper to make it yourself.

(NB: The prices below are in $NZ)

I buy my flour in 20kg sacks (really good professional stuff) for around $27 (around $1.35 per kg). I make a decent sized loaf of sourdough each weekend that contains around 700g of flour (+ say 200g extra for feeding the starter during the week), so that's 900g of flour = approx $1.20. Add a couple of tsp of salt = 5c say.

To buy an equivalent loaf from a good baker will cost around $5-6, so I think I'm reasonably well ahead of the game. Even compared with a loaf of supermarket plastic bread (I don't actually know how much this costs as I never buy it - maybe around $2.something?) it works out cheaper. Making a simple white tin loaf (nearest thing to supermarket bread), would use less flour - 500g - and say 20c for yeast and 10c for butter = $1 per loaf.

Once you start using breadmakers and premixes, I'm sure the cost of making your own would start to rise quite a bit.

[Lost soul]

Super Bad said:

okgo said:

Seeing as bread is so cheap anyway, what is the advantage of doing this?

The taste of freshly baked bread cant be beat

I would think if you save anything its pennys , but taste wise you would gain a lot

[Mobile Chicane]

A boggo Waitrose wholemeal sliced loaf is 77p and tastes fine.

Though you have to hunt for it as the cheap bread is carefully hidden behind the stuff that's organically crafted over ley lines by virgins at dawn.

[Saag Aloo]

Mobile Chicane said:

A boggo Waitrose wholemeal sliced loaf is 77p and tastes fine.

Though you have to hunt for it as the cheap bread is carefully hidden behind the stuff that's organically crafted over ley lines by virgins at dawn.

[Rude Girl]

Mobile Chicane said:

A boggo Waitrose wholemeal sliced loaf is 77p and tastes fine.

If it tastes fine to you, then buy it

[HiRich]

I did some thumbnail calcs some time ago, and reckon my breadmaker (Panasonic, £50) has been paid for in about a year. That's based on:

• Standard "proper" loaf or half-loaf I used to have. Was about £1, went up to about £1.50
• Waitrose standard strong flour has stayed resolutely at 79p for 1.5kg (3 half loaves)
• Costs for yeast, butter, salt, sugar and electricity, take my homemade bread to about 50p for a half loaf
• I have maybe two half loaves a week, always bog standard

I had hoped it would pay for itself in its lifetime, but bread costs jumped significantly. And of course that doesn't factor in the better taste, freshness, and better health (far less salt).

[marctwo]

I just got a Panasonic SD255 over the weekend. Been thinking about getting one for ages and everything I read said get the Panasonic.

I've only done one loaf but it was very nice. I don't see it as working out cheaper, more about being able to have the bread you like fresh, and knowing what is actually in it (no preservatives etc).

Flour was 99p for 1.5kg from Sainsburys and I would think you could get 3 loaves/loafs (sp?) out of that.

Has anyone got any nice recipes to share?

[Shaw Tarse]

I'll get the web address of the people mum gets her flour from, Apple & Cinnomon is good for breakfast. Onion bread nice for lunch, sarnies.