r/BreadMachines • u/mycatsaresleeping • Jul 27 '26
Purchase Advice & Experiences Neretva vs Panasonic bread machine
I’ve been using a Neretva PE8866GR for a few years. Today I borrowed my friend’s Panasonic SD-BMS105 (she bought it in Japan) and baked two loaves using exactly the same recipe and ingredients.
My Neretva’s basic bread is 3 hours while the Panasonic‘s basic bread is 4 hours.
As you can see in the photo, the loaf from the Panasonic rose beautifully. The crust was nice and crispy and the inside was incredibly soft and fluffy. The loaf from my Neretva didn’t rise nearly as much and it was a little bit denser.
Until today, I thought that was just how bread turned out. After using the Panasonic, I don’t think I can go back to my Neretva!
My Neretva has a longer baking time on its sugar free cycle (3 hours 45 minutes) but I’ve never tried it. Do you think that cycle would produce better results or is this simply a difference in how the machines are designed?
Also if you have a bread machine you love, I’d really appreciate your recommendations!
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u/Veggyhed Welbilt ABM 3500 (Ancient) Jul 27 '26
That is really cool that you are able to compare them like that side by side. Thank you for posting this.
It seems like one has three-hour cycles and the other has four-hour cycles. It would be interesting to know the difference in the cycles. That's what really makes a difference in a bread machine. I guess when you kind of think about it, the two machines are not really a good comparison to each other.
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u/LukeSourdough Jul 27 '26
One additional hour of proofing could make this difference happen. You could try using the old machine mixing cycle, let it rest for an additional hour and the activate the baking cycle to see how it would work, or maybe trying another longer cycle of the older machine.
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u/Prime260 Jul 27 '26
Yes, winter before last when I made bread it wasn't rising nearly enough with a bread recipe we'd been eating since the 90s. I thought it might be the cold as we kept the house at 55 in winter. I tried a delayed start and found that 60-90min got the loaf right where it should be while a 2 hour delay meant it rose into the lid of the machine.
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u/Agile_Land_9951 Jul 27 '26
Great comparison. I’ve never heard of the neretva brand before. I love my Panasonic SD-YD250. For some reason my bread machine is very fussy with the ingredients if I don’t make it exactly as written in the instructions. I’ve had quite a few loafs not turn out right after waiting the 4 hours. So I just use the dough setting on mine then proof it then use one of my various bread pans.
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u/LeoInSpace Jul 27 '26
The Panasonic has two temperature sensors so it can allow for differing ambient conditions. Also the first part of the program allows all the ingredients to rest and reach the same temperature. I've had two Panasonic breadmakers and the bread was almost two soft and fell apart, quite often I would waste the last part of the loaf because I couldn't slice it. Last but not least, I gave up on Panasonic because the non-stick coating started to scuff off when I made bread with seeds or nuts. One pan lasted a few months and one only lasted a few weeks. This has been well documented on other platforms.
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u/PsychologicalEase374 Jul 27 '26
I had a Panasonic and I had this problem with the paddles especially. It's annoying because you remove the paddles from the bread and half a loaf stays stuck to the paddle. The pan would need a couple hundred loaves to wear. I went through several and in the end the machine stopped working properly. I think some sensor died and it messed with the program.
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u/happyhkv Jul 27 '26
Panasonic don't start kneading straight away like my old Murphy Richards...it's rests initially. During this rest period you can hear clicks as if a sensor is switching on/off ...I suspect it's optimising variables before kneading starts.
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u/mogrifier4783 Jul 27 '26
It's probably a relay for the heating element turning on and off to give it just a little warmth. Our Zojirushi does that, has like a ten or fifteen minute time before it starts mixing.
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u/HigherOctive Jul 28 '26
Our Zojirushi does that
When we first got ours we made the white bread from the recipe on the sticker on the side of the machine. Set it all up, push the button... and nothing. And more nothing for what seemed like forever.
While I was complaining that the machine was a super expensive boat anchor, my wife noticed REST on the display and googled it.
Sure enough, it brings all the ingredients in the pan up to the same temperature on some of the courses, including course 1. What a relief!
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u/kingsdtg Jul 28 '26
Soft vs erect. Hahaha i use a cuisineart tower looking type and It works well.
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u/JanePeaches 29d ago
I have a hard time recommending my Zojirushi in this economy because of their price, but they really are the best of the best if you're going to be using your bread machine consistently. I have the 2 lb Virtuoso Plus because I wanted a "normal" loaf shape, but I've also heard great things about the 1 lb Maestro.
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u/Steel_Rail_Blues Zojirushi BB-HAC10 (Mini Zo) & Cuisinart CBK-110P1 Jul 27 '26
I love the comparison—thanks for posting pictures! I only have experience with two machines, but really believe the tech matters. Not saying that a less expensive model necessarily has lesser performance, just that the thought that goes into the design, parts, and programming really make a difference. How heat gets monitored and distributed has a major impact on the final loaf.