ZojirushiBB-HAC10 Home Bakery 1-Pound-Loaf Programmable Mini Breadmaker, White

I love this mini Zoji!Carefully follow instructions for pan and blade cleaning and maintenance to ensure long life. It is "nonstick" but I also applied a very thin coating of coconut oil to blade and inside pan before adding water, flour, salt, yeast, sweetener. Followed Zoji manual recipes. Bread slipped right out and blade was left in place no problem. Made Whole Wheat. Got about 8 to 10 very thin slices. It was fresh and delicious. We are taking this thing in the RV for sure! We will use home milled wheat grains and freeze fresh flour right before the trips. Will store yeast and fresh flour in RV freezer bag to slow oxidation. So happy! Bought on Amazon to get 4 yr extended warranty also. Manuf doesn't offer that on website.

My Zojirushi Mini (BB-HAC10) arrived a few days ago and I'm baking Loaf #4 as I write this. First, the delivery was prompt. I chose Amazon's free shipping but for some reason, it was sent overnight to me. That was a nice touch. This is my very first bread machine and I bought it because my husband and I (no kids) constantly have bread problems: the commercial loaves are too big for us and we end up throwing out 1/2 the loaf, OR we run out of bread mid-week when it is inconvenient to go to the store. Add to that our refusal to buy bread with preservatives and whatnot added to it. So it was inevitable that we'd buy a bread machine. Living in a condo with a small kitchen, this machine was an easy choice because of size (we hardly notice it on the counter now). The price was a bit of an issue but we justified that based on the superlative reviews this model has received. The first two loaves of bread I baked were truly delicious though a bit dense -- got the recipe off a website where the contributor owned an identical unit. But being new to bread-making, I didn't realize that there was a difference between "bread flour" and something called "whole wheat bread flour". I bought the latter... an absolutely delicious (and equally nutritious) version of regular whole wheat flour but of course requires more leavening than "bread flour". I had bought these ingredients ahead of time, having no clue what the Zo's own recipes contained, only knowing that most reviewers liked these recipes quite well. Loaf #3 was Zo's basic white bread and it turned out beautifully. In fact it rose so much that it was flat against the lid by the third rise. I had to open it and deflate it with a toothpick. Anyway, I'd like to save anyone who has ordered this Zo from the trouble of buying the wrong ingredients for the first few loaves you'd probably make if this is your first experience with a bread machine. Here's what you need for the regular cycle recipe for white bread from the Zo manual: water, bread flour, sugar, dry milk, salt, butter, active dry yeast (breadmaker yeast works too).I also bought Beth Hensberger's "The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook" after using Amazon's search-inside feature and reading a bit of it. It's very comprehensive and very educational for beginners like myself (600+ pages for $14). Though most of her recipes are for 2-lb loaves, she says you can halve the quantities for 1-lb. Some people disagree. My Loaf #4 (raisin bread) is such a conversion and I'm hoping she's right! This Zo, by the way, is not made in Japan, but is made in China. The construction is of extremely high quality and certainly has that sort of "Hello Kitty" Japanese look to it. The bread pan is very thick and solid. It fits very easily into the slot in the machine and putting it in and taking it takes hardly any effort. I cannot believe just how easy the whole bread-making process is. I know that other reviewers have been saying that, but I couldn't imagine that bread-making could ever be called easy. But this machine really does make it easy. The hardest part, I would say, is making precise measurements and learning about some of the chemistry behind bread-making. I've also never, ever baked anything that required so little clean-up. The bread pan and mixing paddle barely look like they are used after each loaf is removed. Once, there was a bit hard dough stuck in the tiny space between the paddle and the rod that holds it, and I found that the quickest way to clean it was to soak the whole thing in water for 10 minutes. I'm hesitant to soak it in soapy water because I don't want anything eating into the non-stick coating. I've also been using the soft side of a sponge, not the scrubby side (even though the scrubby side is designed for non-stick coatings). The notch made in the bread by the paddle is quite insignificant. I've eaten airy breads with much larger holes in the slices before. The beeping sound after 30 minutes for adding extra ingredients and for completion of baking is soft and I've been using my microwave's loud timer alongside the Zo to make sure I don't miss it. The operation of the Zo is VERY quiet. My husband was in the kitchen cooking dinner while the bread was baking and I had to ask him to take a look and see if the machine was actually doing anything. (It was. It was kneading). Sometimes you can hear the whirr of the paddle in another room if there isn't any other ambient noise. The unit came with a plastic measuring cup (1-cup size) and a plastic tablespoon/teaspoon measure. It also came with a VHS tape which was useless for me. A DVD would have been so much better, or even an online demo on [...]. The buttons on the Zo itself are simple and self-explanatory. For example, I realized after putting in the ingredients of my last loaf that I'd have to use a new cycle and I was able to figure out in a matter of seconds which buttons to press. The Zo has a cake-making and jam-making feature and those will be my next ventures. The size of the 1-lb loaf, by the way, is substantial for two people - enough for two meals for two people.Lastly, I did feel compelled to buy an additional 2-year warranty after reading some of the reviewers talk about units that conked out. (I bought it via Amazon from Square Trade for $22). I will follow up on this review in a few months.10/13/2010 - Now that I've had this breadmaker for a few months, I have to say that I really love it. I use it 3-4 times a week. The process couldn't be simpler. The breads come out perfectly every time. When we have company I bake two loaves using the quick cycle. The cake function is great though the loaves are small. They're perfect for 2-3 people but not if you have company. Last week I used a 2-lb recipe for banana bread and had the Zojirushi mix it up but then I took it out and baked it in a regular size loaf pan in the oven. Turned out perfect. I've made jam twice. Both times the results were way too liquidy and uncooked and I had to transfer it to a saucepan to cook for an additional 20 mins on the stovetop. Still it saves you about an hour of stirring.09/02/2011 - More than a year later, it's still going strong. There are two small worn out patches inside the pan that make taking the bread out slightly harder but I suppose that's to be expected when you bake 3-4 times a week.

I had been contemplating purchasing a bread maker for quite some time, and of course checked Amazon. I read the reviews on several machines before purchase, and this little machine received 5 stars, and many good reviews. I have a family of 3, and was hesitant at first to purchase only a 1 lb loaf machine,rather than one larger, to be able to make 1 and 2 lb. loaves. I am very happy with my purchase of this product, and have had it for several months now. I hate it when reviewers review a product right out of the package, and haven't truly given it time to establish a proper review. I feel I have utilized this product enough to rate it appropriately. Let it be known, however, that I have no prior bread machine use in the past; this is my first.Pro's: Easy to clean, with a removable pan. Package states not to let water sit too long for fear of rusting the pan. It is also non-stick, and bread comes out perfectly each time. There are multiple settings depending upon type of bread, etc. being made. I like the fact that it is easy to clean the putside of the machine as well with a wipe down, and you can actually see the bread being made from a see through window. There is also a recipe sticker on the side, for easy access of basic white bread, which is the one I use most frequently. It makes it easily accessible. There is also a small recipe book that comes with the machine for other types of bread, and recipes that have been tested on this particular machine. It's small, compact size does make it easy to store on the counter, without taking up much space. It has other setting such as dough and jam settings, or it rises and makes the bread dough for you, and then you can place it in the oven, if you choose that method of baking. It doesn't heat up the kitchen like turning on the oven does. There is nothing like the smell of fresh baked bread! You can just set it, and forget it! Wait, that reminds me of another machine infomercial that came out years ago :) Once yor bread is done, it keeps it warm for awhile, and then eventually, it says "complete" on the screen, and keeps the bread at room temp.Cons: I wish you could turn off the beeping sound that tells you it's time to add raisins or nuts to the bread. It beeps, even though you are making regular white bread. However, it only beeps for a few seconds. I wish there wasn't a hole in the bottom of the bread from the mixer tool, but I think that happens with most bread makers. Small bits of dough get underneath the mixer tool in the pan, and when they harden during the baking process, it makes it somewhat difficult to remove the contraption to clean. So, I just leave it in, and then clean the entire pan as a whole. Once you set the buttons for a setting for baking readiness, you can't change it, at least that I've found. I accidentally hit the Darker bread setting, rather than my usual lighter setting, and I was unable to change it. I also wish this maker had an even lighter crust setting, as I don't like my bread dark-not that it comes out that bad, I just prefer everything lighter. I also wish the company would come out with other colors, such as stainless or black, rather than just white. All my kitchen appliances are black and stainless, so it stands out a little, since I leave it on the counter all the time. But, it certainly doesn't affect the usage of the product.Overall, this is a great little product. It's one of the most expensive on the market, but it's definitely worth it. It's worth knowing the ingredients you put into your bread, and worth the smell and the taste of fresh bread. 1 lb. load lasts about 2 days for my 3 person family, and we usually don't have any left over. It makes about 6-8 slices, depending upon how thin you cut them. I have yet to experience other types of bread, besides white, wheat, and honey wheat, but all have come out fantastic. I also purchsed another cookbook to go with my bread machine. But, if you follow the recipes in the cookbook that comes with it, they have been tested in the machine, and come out well. THis machine wouldn't be optimal if you eat a lot of bread, or have a larger family, unless you desire to make several loaves at a time. It does take about 3 hrs and 30 min minimum for a loaf from start to finish. So, it is time consuming, if you have other loaves to make in one day. It's really easy to use, and it's perfect to teach kids even how to make fresh bread, with supervision of course. The buttons are easy to read as well. I would defintely recommend this product to anyone who wants to cut back on expenses at the grocery store. I use the King Arthur brand of bread flour, and bought the jar of yeast at the store. Making about 2-3 loaves a week, The bread flour package lasted me about 3 weeks, and the jar of yeast, I'm not even half way through. So, it's definitely worth the upfront costs to spending 3 bucks on a loaf of artificial bread at the store.

This bread maker worked very well. Instructions are easy to follow and a breeze to clean.My only qualm is that it leaves me so much counter space! Really, it’s too small of a loaf or I eat too much bread because it’s delicious. But I ended up opting for the bigger model for the 2 lbs loaf ability.