Hey! This site is reader-supported and we earn commissions if you purchase products from retailers after clicking on a link from our site.
For as long as you’ve been eating solid food, chances are you’ve had bread. If you’re lucky enough, you might have tried the deep flavors of sourdough bread. Below we have reviewed what we beleive to be the best bread machines for making sourdough available today.
Invalid table id.Best Bread Maker for Sourdough
1. Zojirushi BB-CEC20 Home Bakery Supreme Breadmaker
Zojirushi is a brand that every good baker knows about. They are a Japanese brand that specializes in this art form. This bread maker is more expensive than most, and that’s because it is the gold standard of bread machines.
The thing that makes this machine perfect for sourdough is the sourdough starter function. This function literally makes the starter for you in a two hour time period. This prevents you from needing to find the starter in an older batch or buying the starter from a baker.
This machine comes with heavy-duty dual blades which are highly sought after. The blades are removable and are meant to be securely attached to the inner cooking pan so that they can knead the dough thoroughly.
This pan is also an important aspect of the maker because it is relatively nonstick. It can hold a traditional two-pound loaf of bread. The kneaders are so durable that they can handle kneading whole wheat flours such as rye for the longer periods of time that they require.
- Dual-blade bread machine makes rectangular-shaped 2-pound loaves
- 10 pre-programmed settings; 3 crust shades; LCD control panel; 13-hour delay timer
- Large viewing window; removable nonstick bread pan for easy cleaning
- Measuring spoon, measuring cup, and user manual with recipes included.Measures approximately 9-5/8 by 17 by 12-1/5 inches
- Electrical rating:120 volts / 700 watts
The Zojirushi machines are some of the easiest to use on the market. They come with a large LCD control panel that is very user-friendly and a large window to watch the bread rise. Almost every product in this machine can be made within 2 hours and there is even a 13 hour time delay. This is a great feature for those who work long days and want to come home to freshly baked bread.
This machine has multiple modes and programs to make your life even easier. This bread machine can make cake, and it can also make jam so that you don’t have to stand over the stove stirring it.
2. KBS Automatic 2LB Bread Maker
The KBS automatic bread maker is a great option for beginners. Not only is it a reputable brand with incredible reviews, it’s also affordable. While this isn’t the cheapest option on the market, it is one of the best deals available.
This bread maker comes with a big, bright, and user-friendly LCD display with touch controls. No buttons to worry about cleaning or getting wet on this unit! Furthermore, it comes with many options that are incredibly useful such as a gluten-free program.
The KBS bread maker comes with a traditional two-pound loaf capacity and 17 integrated programs. Some of these programs include gluten-free, whole wheat, jam, and quick bread. Other than these programs, this machine comes with quite a few exciting settings such as chosing how brown you want the crust. As we know, the crust can make or break a good loaf of bread. This unit comes with the ability to choose from light, medium, or dark crust.
- 🍞【Multiple Customized Nutritious Programs & 2LB Large Actual Capacity】The KBS automatic bread machine has 17 practical programs for French, Whole Wheat, kneading and fermentation, Jam, Yogurt, Cake, etc, not only a bread maker. Additional convenience with Pizza Dough setting and Gluten-Free program. The "Quick bake"- bake a loaf in under 1.5H. It bakes 1 lb, 1.5 lb, 2 lb loaves, and 3 crust settings in light/medium/dark. Bring a variety of options to your healthier and tastier homemade bread.
- 🥪【Unique Healthy Non-stick Ceramic Pan & 710W Powerful Quieter Motor】Exclusive one to use Ceramic Pan designed to make the bread evenly baked and healthier for 100% no chemicals(BPA-Teflon-PTFE Free) and easy to clean. Best Gift for family. 710W high power motor makes the kneading quickly, strong and durable, so that the dough is soft and elastic, while the overheating protection function extends the bread machine life length, motor noise is less than 40 db, which will not affect your sleep.
- 🥐【Intelligent Fruit and Nut Dispenser & 15H Timer & 1H Automatic Warm/Fresh-Keeping Function】The detachable fruit nut dispenser releases the ingredients automatically at the optimum time. The most worry-free machine. You don't need to keep an eye on the time. 15-hour Delay Timer allows you to enjoy fresh bread without having to wake up early. The most popular 1-Hour Automatic Keep Warm, 15-minute Power Interruption Recovery allow for healthy breads anytime!
- 🍰【Intuitive Digital Touch Panel Control & Fully Sleek Stainless Steel & 360° Surrounding Baking】 Bright & large viewing digital Touch Panel is easy to view and select the cycle, crust, and loaf size. Stainless steel heat-resistant and not easy to damage, baked bread more delicious and healthy. Breadmaker with advanced baking technology and 710W power output design, it makes bread baking more efficient and faster. 360-degree baking for thinner crusts, fluffier bread, more evenly healthy color.
- 🍕【More Practical Accessories/Recipe book Included& Superior Professional Humanized Details 】Large viewing window offers you a full view of the process. Click the start button to stop, long press the start button to cancel the current program, Maximum convenience for you. Including more additional accessories: Ceramic Pan, Paddle*2, Kitchen Glove, Measuring Cup, Measuring Spoon, Hook, User Manual, more Recipe Book and Other Versatile Accessories. For the finest cooking experience.
Additionally, this bread maker has a fruit and nut dispenser that is detachable. This dispenser releases the ingredients into the mixture at the right time without you needing to do a thing.
Speaking of not needing to do a thing, the bread maker also comes with a 15-hour delay timer, 1 hour keep warm timer, and a 15-minute power interruption to make sure that nothing gets in the way of your fresh bread.
3. Breville BBM800XL Custom Loaf Bread Maker
Breville is a name most of us know and love, for a very good reason! They make incredibly high-quality appliances that have made their way into home kitchens across the world. At the higher end of the price range, this bread maker is at the top of the line.
Like the KBS option, the Breville comes with an automatic fruit and nut dispenser to ensure the ingredients will be kneaded in at the right time. Additionally, the unit comes with 13 automatic settings and programs for you to choose from. Some of these programs include yeast-free, crusty loaf, dough for pasta, and jam.
This also includes 3 different crust colors and 4 different loaf sizes. These colors include light, medium, and dark. The loaf sizes that can be made in this bread maker is 1 pound, 1.5 pounds, 2 pounds, and 2.5 pounds.
- Automatic fruit and nut dispenser releases ingredients at the right moment during the knead phase so they are evenly incorporated within the dough. Voltage : 110–120 Volts
- Unique collapsible kneading paddle thoroughly mixes ingredients then collapses before bake phase to minimize the hole at the base of the baked loaf
- Smart lcd screen with progress indicator displaying 13 automatic settings, 3 crust colors, and 4 loaf sizes
- Loaf sizes include 1.0-pound, 1-1/2-pound, 2.0 ln and 2-1/2-pound (Family size)
- 46 step by step recipes (basic, whole wheat, gluten free, crusty loaf, sweet, yeast free, dough, jam as well custom recipe charts). Power : 830 Watts
The kneading paddles are fairly original in this unit as they are collapsible. They are heavy-duty and can knead any loaf of bread thoroughly. They collapse before the baking begins in order to minimize any of the holes at the base.
What is sourdough?
Sourdough is a regular bread but it’s made a bit differently. Rather than using a store-bought yeast to make the dough rise, sourdough is made with a combination of yeast and bacteria. This bacteria is found in combinations of flour and water once it has turned into a paste and fermented.
When making sourdough bread, bakers will often just use the bacteria that is leftover from a previous batch as the starter. Besides being incredibly good for gut health, it is a lot easier to digest and absorb the nutrients found in the bread.
Additionally, sourdough stores incredibly well for a bit longer than regular bread.
What is the Best Bread Maker for Sourdough?
Making bread with your hands can be really rewarding, but today, not many people have time for that. With kids, school, work, social lives, extracurriculars, and more, making it by hand might not be an option.
Fortunately, bread makers have been around for years. Even the strictest bread bakers will use them. You can definitely use any regular bread maker to make sourdough, but the process of making the starter is different. Therefore, a specific-to-sourdough bread maker would make a much better loaf.
When looking for a sourdough bread maker, you should start with an adjustable timer. The timer should be specific to rising time because sourdough will take a bit longer to rise than other breads. This is not something you can usually tell with just a look, so a rising timer is necessary!
Bread makers can be expensive and sometimes there are options for beginners and experts.
Best Bread Machine for Beginners – Tips
If you’re new to baking bread and are in the market for a bread maker, there are a few things you should be on the lookout for.
For starters, look within your price range. If you are new to bread making, you might find that you actually prefer making them by hand or not at all. Maybe don’t buy the most expensive commercial-grade option if you are just starting out.
The second thing to look for is a reputable brand. Brands are reputable for a reason, they’ve been tested over time for quality and performance. The last thing you want as a beginner making your first loaf of bread is a badly made machine that breaks down on you.
Now that you’ve figured out a price range and a few brands that you like, it’s time to look for features. For starters, you need something with specific and various programs. If you are new to baking bread, you might not have a favorite type yet, so you will discover it during the process.
Each bread machine comes with programs and modes to choose from, and having multiple options will help you in the long run. Some machines come with 3 modes while others come with almost 20.
With these programs, you should also look for a bread machine that comes with the ability to choose the crust. The crust is a really important part of the bread. Some of us hate it while others know bread isn’t bread without a good crust. There are a lot of bread machines and many of them do not come with crust options. Be sure to keep an eye out for it!
If you do know the type of bread you will be making, then look for something specific. If you want a diet program there is a machine for that and if you want sourdough bread there is a machine for that as well. Timers are another really important feature that can sometimes be overlooked. Whether it is a delay timer or a rising timer, they can be really vital in making a good loaf of bread.
The bread pan and the kneading blades, if they come equipped with them, are also important. You want something that is made out of safe and heavy-duty materials but is also dishwasher safe. If you’re looking at a bread maker, you probably want something that is quick and easy to clean as well.
Last but not least, size does matter! When baking bread, the size is actually very important. In some bread machines, you can only make a one-pound loaf where other options will allow you much larger loaves. Certain machines will have the option of 1-4 pounds, and that is what we recommend looking for.
The more options, the better!
