Mixers

[Archena]

Re: Mixers

I'm not sure I understand the concern about heat. Most of the bread we make uses fairly warm water (if not very hot water) to begin with. Yeast needs warmth to grow. Our experience is that the temperature goes down during mixing, not up. And that applies to both the KA and the Bosch.

Yeast is like most everything else, it has a range of temperatures where it's comfy. Too hot or too cold and the bread won't rise properly.

I've never used a mixer, but I suspect that if it is starting to get hot from mixing you are over mixing, the equivalent of over kneading. You'll end up with something tough and chewy.

I watched the video and wouldn't recommend buying the Bosch based on that alone. It was so biased in approach that the Bosch people should be embarassed. Comparing the slowest KA speed (a slow crawl) to the slowest Bosch speed (a pretty good sprint) is ridiculously misleading. If I recall right, KA recommends mixing bread at level 4, which is a lot more comparable to the Bosch speed. And my wife tells me that one of the down sides to the Bosch is that there is no slow speed.

I would still get the Bosch for bread, but it makes me pause when a company uses such obviously misleading advertising to sell its product.

Joe

I don't like that kind of advertising either.

[nissanneill]

Re: Mixers

Well,
biased or not against the KA, I would buy the Bosch. It seemed very impressive to me and a lot easier and quicker than by hand or using a Kenwood Chef.
I am curently looking at 2 old commercial mixers and some of the 'new' Chinese made (and a US Anvil brand) commercial mixer. I found a couple of large ones cheap but I could sit in them with the mix, way to big for the back yard! (Got a couple of pics of them but can't get them off my phone until I find a cable).
Once again,like most things on this forum, too much information and hard decisions to be made but I want to buy myself a Christmas present only better than the under engineered domestic machines.
I would like to see the diving hand mixers but they are almost impossible to get, so thought of building one but that will take too much time and effort when compared to buying one and using it in a couple of days.

Neill

[Les]

Re: Mixers

I propose a bonus of five kilos of Caputo for anyone who can figure a way to adapt the HF tile saw for kneeding dough.

This thread is starting to make my head hurt - I'm 100% behind David on this one I bought the KA a while back but I am sorry to say I haven't used it yet so I have no real experience - It looks very cool....

Les...

[RTflorida]

Re: Mixers

I'm with ya Les, too much info really clouds one's judgement. I really have no experience using anything other than a cheap hand mixer and the above mentioned cheap stand mixer. I've never worked in a commerical kitchen so no comment on those models, and although I consider myself mechanically inclined - I probably couldn't/wouldn't attempt the re-enegineering that Neill suggests...would be fun to try and tinker with, but I wouldn't expect much from my end result. All that said, I researched this to death (like I tend to do with everything - not necessarily a good thing). In the end my choice was swayed the most by "brand loyalty" from my experience with other NON MIXER Bosch products. I sure hope I didn't make a $1000 mistake...I recall someone buying an expensive gas grill based on his "research", and that purchase has nickeled and dimed him to death. (Yes, that was me).
Here is a revelation for you.....I still have not told my wife I just spent a grand on a mixer and attachments...I usually fare much better begging for forgiveness than asking for permission. As she always says...if you want it and have a way to pay for it, you're going to buy it regardless of what I say; this time I took it literally and have not said a word, I may be curled up sleeping in my oven by early next week.

Les, I recall that you were pretty excited about the KA purchase, didn't you want all the attachments as well? Still have not used it? Dude, lie to me...say you use it daily and couldn't live without all the gadgets......I think a bit of buyers remorse is starting to set in.

RT

[Les]

Re: Mixers

I usually fare much better begging for forgiveness than asking for permission.

LOL - reminds me of a comedian. Prayed and prayed to God for a bicycle, didn't get one, so he stoled it, then begged for forgiveness.

RT, I really haven't used it yet - kinda like my oven I figure if you have it , the need will come...

Les...

[nissanneill]

Re: Mixers

RT,
you sound like a man after my own heart.

O.K., I've done it.....I Just purchased the Bosch Universal Plus, should be here in a few days. In true American fashion - I over bought, I think the only items I didn't buy were the grain mill and its attachments.

I am thinking around one of these BUT I am also aimed a smallish commercial unit. The 5Kg Hobart sells here for Aus$3100 which is in my case unjustifiable, however a good but older Hobart 10Kg for around $500 to $800 is a much more feasible option.
With that said, a new US made 'Anvil 10quart for Aus$1250, and Chinese commercial machines for Aus$800.
I would like a 'Diving arm" mixer but they are almost impossible to find let alone buy new. (See the picture). These have supposedly the best kneading action and don't increase excessively the dough temperature.
Quite simple to make, 2 counter rotating gear or chain driven sprockets, 2 paddles with shaped ends and fixed on the other ends. All you then need to do us rotate the bowl for the 2 arms to collect fresh dough, squeeze and knead it.
When you get your new Bosch, put it to the test and let's know of it's performance (including temperature increase on a normal dough mix) before your wife finds out that you purchased one and wraps it around you after she finds out how much you spent!

Neill

[egalecki]

Re: Mixers

RT- I have a KA- it's a couple of years old, so it's among the ones most people seem to hate. I don't hate mine at all. Dinah's a little loud, but I use her all the time, for bread, cake, cookies, meat grinding, sausage stuffing and ice cream making. I want a pasta roller next.

She's never failed me and I've used her pretty hard at times...

[jmhepworth]

Re: Mixers

We have the pasta roller for the KA and use it a lot. I think that's my favorite attachment. It really beats the hand crank. But $99 is a steep price to pay for being too lazy to crank by hand.

Joe

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: Mixers

I use the pasta roller on my KA too, I love it.

Drake

[gjbingham]

Re: Mixers

Fun thread. I think I've read this years ago, but I'm too lazy to go back and read the whole thing again.
I love my KA mixer for bread, but I seriously think I'm going to kill it with bread dough. I have pasta and ice cream attachments for it so I try to take it easy on the old girl with the bread dough.
CJim did a wonderful job discussing (bitching out) the KA mixer on another thread. I'm certain, at least in my own limited mind, that the electrolux dough mixer DLX 2000 (?) was the best for bread dough, in limited quantities. Somewhere around 500 bucks, but makes wonderful dough, and leaves the KA mixer for simpler tasks - whipping egg whites, cutting pasta and making gelati (ice creams).

While mine has withstood my abuses so far, I firmly believe that the burning electrical smells that eminate from my mixer indicate that the KA is not the best machine for bread dough. CJim's stated frustration clearly point that out.

Just a thought.

[egalecki]

Re: Mixers

Burning electrical smells!?!

Holy cow. Dinah has never smelled remotely like that. If she did, I'd stop using her immediately. The last appliance I used that smelled like it was on fire WAS on fire. A hair dryer. Luckily, I was not also on fire.

Does your mixer smell funny when you use it for other things? Or just bread?

[jimmaria]

Re: Mixers

Hello:

I have a Bosch Universal Mixer. It is built like a rock, and I have no doubt that it will last a long time. The one hesitation I would have in recommending it is that, even on the lowest speed, the rotations are very fast and, in my experience, can quickly heat the dough beyond where I want it to be (i.e., 78 degrees F or less). I have actually hooked up a light dimmer switch to the power cord so that I can slow it down, which helps a bit, but is not perfect (at slow speeds the motor will often just stop upon resistance).

I feel it is important to keep the temp of the dough down so that it does not lose flavor or become over-oxidized. (It is possible I am placing too much emphasis on this, and I have not done a side by side comparision in this regard).

I would say that, other than the temp issue, the mixer does a great job developing the dough at full speed.

Jim

[nissanneill]

Re: Mixers

Well, it's done, collected and only needs to be installed, (once I get the bench tops done.
I have been sourcing several commercial dough mixers over the past week. I have read this thread from beginning to end, decided that a Bosch mixer would suffice, try to source one here NONE AVAILABLE!.The next best thing was good secondhand Hobart. Only 20 quart sizes available - way too big for this little duck, so a new one?? A 5 quart Hobart is a minimum of Aus$3200 and the smallest commercial ones are $800 PLUS freight (another couple of hundred bucks).
I purchased a new (albeit a Chinese model) 10 quart (5Kg) model, 2 speed with a whisk, beater but NO DOUGH HOOK! It is a very heavy duty (and weight of 70kg) so the next task is to make one to fit. The importer dropped $200 from his initial price for me to source one, but I recon I can make one for less than $5 using some 5/8" stainless bar and buying a 4" billet of 1 1/4" stainless for the coupling.
It should do me well for the few times that I need it.
The wife won't let it in the house, so I guess it'll live outside in the new kitchen.

Neill

[ERASMO]

Re: Mixers

Jim

I just received a new Bosch universal plus. I will mainly be mixing caputo pizza dough and some basic bread doughs. What do you find is the most comfortable quantity of flour for the mixer? Also, In what order do you add the ingredients?

Does anyone else have any advice for this mixer?

Thanks

[Archena]

Re: Mixers

Neil,

Sorry, but I have to go with your wife on this one. That thing is just ugly. I think you're lucky she lets it live in the outdoor kitchen. I hope it works better than it looks...