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The junk we eat that passes for bread.

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  • Registered Users Posts: 33,519 ✭✭✭✭dudara


    Moved to Food & Drink

    dudara


  • Registered Users Posts: 35,523 ✭✭✭✭Gordon


    I just bought a breadmaker and I'm really happy with it. Not only can you make bread in the style you want, you can chuck flour & stuff into it and just leave it to make pizza dough. It'd probably be a long time until it saved you money, but the fact that you know exactly what goes into it, and the smell of fresh bread is great.


  • Registered Users Posts: 335 ✭✭markfla


    count yourself lucky you're not in the states, been in Phoenix the last two months and the bread is worse than anything you can get in Ireland. Bread that stays soft for a couple of weeks you'd have to be suspicious of!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,743 ✭✭✭blatantrereg


    just get better quality bread. Some soda bread is just flour, buttermilk, soda really.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,424 ✭✭✭brick tamland


    Id be interested to know whats the best comercial bread to be buying too. I like the idea of making my own bread but its not an option for me unfortunatly.


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,743 ✭✭✭blatantrereg


    oops sorry I missed the question in my last post.
    McCambridges is decent and widely avaialable. Ingredients:
    Fresh Buttermilk, Wholemeal Flour, Wheatflour, Bicarbonate of Soda, Salt, Wheatgerm.

    Nothing else.

    Some of the "Seán's Bread" or whatever it is called are even better - some of them only use wholegrain. But it might not be in the supermarket.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,383 ✭✭✭emeraldstar


    markfla wrote: »
    count yourself lucky you're not in the states, been in Phoenix the last two months and the bread is worse than anything you can get in Ireland. Bread that stays soft for a couple of weeks you'd have to be suspicious of!
    And it tastes sweet, there's so much sugar and crap in it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 21,404 ✭✭✭✭Alun


    And it tastes sweet, there's so much sugar and crap in it.
    That's good ol' corn syrup, which I think is also why their bread always has a slight yellowish tinge to it. Disgusting horrible stuff indeed.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,407 ✭✭✭Cardinal Richelieu


    Gordon wrote: »
    I just bought a breadmaker and I'm really happy with it. Not only can you make bread in the style you want, you can chuck flour & stuff into it and just leave it to make pizza dough. It'd probably be a long time until it saved you money, but the fact that you know exactly what goes into it, and the smell of fresh bread is great.

    Let us know in 6 months if your still using it, IMHO its one of those gadgets people rave about for 2 months then becomes an over sized paperweight in the kitchen.


  • Registered Users Posts: 21,404 ✭✭✭✭Alun


    Let us know in 6 months if your still using it, IMHO its one of those gadgets people rave about for 2 months then becomes an over sized paperweight in the kitchen.
    I've had mine (a Panasonic SD-253) for nearly six years now and it gets used every week at least.


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 3,981 ✭✭✭ElleEm


    I'm considering getting a bread maker. My mother has one and uses it a couple of times a week for plain white and flavoured bread. Yum!


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    i read something recently that was saying that the wheat used to make bread these days has been modified so much since (approx.) the last 50 years or so with selective breeding and then genetic manipulation that there is a bigger difference (genetically) between the wheat of 50 years ago and the GM crops of today than there is between humans and apes.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,407 ✭✭✭Cardinal Richelieu


    vibe666 wrote: »
    i read something recently that was saying that the wheat used to make bread these days has been modified so much since (approx.) the last 50 years or so with selective breeding and then genetic manipulation that there is a bigger difference (genetically) between the wheat of 50 years ago and the GM crops of today than there is between humans and apes.

    Evolution, most food crops have been modified by selective breeding plus now look at the wide variation of food DNA that we consume compared to are ancestors. If you want original bread try spelt flour.


  • Moderators, Category Moderators, Politics Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators, Regional East Moderators Posts: 12,108 CMod ✭✭✭✭Dizzyblonde


    Let us know in 6 months if your still using it, IMHO its one of those gadgets people rave about for 2 months then becomes an over sized paperweight in the kitchen.

    I have my Panasonic years and I use it 3-4 times a week. It's the one gadget that I couldn't live without. The bread is amazing, I make mostly granary bread and a French bread that's fluffy and crusty just like a vienna roll - it's delicious.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,923 ✭✭✭cloptrop


    Ah come on man , get up on a monday mornin and get a fresh pan of Brennans. Its worth the extra euro when its fresh.
    The batch in Lidl/Aldi isnt bad. And their brown soda bread "mccambridges I think" is grand if you like that sort of thing.


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    Evolution, most food crops have been modified by selective breeding plus now look at the wide variation of food DNA that we consume compared to are ancestors. If you want original bread try spelt flour.
    just because everyone is doing it that doesn't mean its a good thing though does it?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,407 ✭✭✭Cardinal Richelieu


    vibe666 wrote: »
    just because everyone is doing it that doesn't mean its a good thing though does it?

    OK......... but I think the tens of million of people alive today because of Norman Borlaug research may think it was a good thing.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,429 ✭✭✭Cedrus


    Bread machines are indispensable when you can't get good bread locally, they are useful when you just want something different, and they're just hassle if you're happy with the local bread. I use mine regularly but I also use the oven when it's on to make hand mixed bread and for pizzas i either use the machine or i hand mix the dough. The machine uses a lot less electricity than the oven if you're just making one loaf.

    We're lucky to have Declan Ryan's Arbutus Bread in the farmers market, but he's only there on saturdays so no use for fresh bread on a wednesday. Lidls new "bakeries" are a massive step up on the typical thaw and bake. I love soda bread but it doesn't go with everything.

    To make good bread you need 'strong flour' which only comes from hard wheat, this cannot be grown everywhere so is expensive. The way round this is to add flour improvers so that the softer wheats can be used for bread and the price can be brought down (or the profit margin up depending on how you look at it). This is why cheap pans are gluey pap.


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    OK......... but I think the tens of million of people alive today because of Norman Borlaug research may think it was a good thing.
    that's a bit of a hollow argument, particularly when there's no telling how much long term damage GM crops have done and continue to be done to the world and it's human and animal population, and unfortunately with companies like monsanto at the wheel, we're not likely to find out until it's far too late to do anything about it, assuming it isn't already too late.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,407 ✭✭✭Cardinal Richelieu


    vibe666 wrote: »
    that's a bit of a hollow argument, particularly when there's no telling how much long term damage GM crops have done and continue to be done to the world and it's human and animal population, and unfortunately with companies like monsanto at the wheel, we're not likely to find out until it's far too late to do anything about it, assuming it isn't already too late.

    I don't want to take this thread offline anymore into a GM argument but I think your confusing GM crops with selective breeding which mankind has practiced for 1000s of years in one form or other with the domestication of animals and cross breeding of crops.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,931 ✭✭✭huskerdu


    Back to the OPs question.

    It is possible to buy better quality commercial bread, once you are prepared to pay a bit extra for it, expect it to go stale quickly and be careful what you buy. The country has plenty of small commercial bakeries supplying bread that is good quality.

    I know it will not be a patch on homemade bread, but not everyone wants to make bread, even with a breadmaker.

    Even in our local Tesco stocks a brand of bread from a bakery in Wexford ( I think the name is Stamfords). It is commercially produced in a medium size bakery, I think but it is much higher quality than the cheaper very mass produced bread.

    Have a look in all your local supermarkets, and small shops, spend some time reading the ingredient list and try a few brands you have never heard of. You might be surprised what you can find.

    Any, some rainy day when you are stuck inside, try making your own. It is easy and the result is fab.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,441 ✭✭✭pampootie


    French bread that's fluffy and crusty just like a vienna roll - it's delicious.

    Could I ask you the recipe for that? I have the Aldi breadmaker and I use it quite a bit but have never found a recipe for white bread in it that comes out the way I like it. Mostly make wholemeal bread and pizza dough in it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,429 ✭✭✭Cedrus


    a French bread that's fluffy and crusty just like a vienna roll - it's delicious.
    pampootie wrote: »
    Could I ask you the recipe for that?

    +1 :pac:


  • Site Banned Posts: 2,037 ✭✭✭paddyandy


    A lot of our bread is Cotton Wool .The Food Industry uses a calculator first with a lot of advertising and they know very well that we are not good at complaining and so standards continue to fall in many areas .They pack the Bread in a brittle Cellophane that cracks and then the bread goes dry and mouldy .All thought out carefully .


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,743 ✭✭✭blatantrereg


    GM crops are resistant to herbicide
    This means that people can nuke them with herbicide to eliminate weeds and keep the crop. Doing this with ordinary crops would just kill the crop too.
    If you want food that hasn't been regularly drenched in poison then avoid GM produce.


  • Registered Users Posts: 16,664 ✭✭✭✭the beer revolu


    Rant warning!! :

    I realise that in certain parts of the country it may be pretty much impossible to get good bread but for the rest of you SEEK IT OUT AND PAY A BIT MORE FOR GOOD BREAD! Don't buy sliced pan and complain that it's rubbish. Support your local good bakery.

    In Cork we have:

    Tom's Bakery in Kinsale who have a cafe and shop in Kinsale, supply The Alternative Bread Company, do the Saturday market in Cork city (amongst others) and also supply some shops and restaurants in Cork. I'm sure if you contact them they'll let you know who they supply (can't find a website) 46 Main Street, Ballinacurra, Kinsale, Co. Cork
    (021) 477 3561 ‎
    These guys are my favourite bread producers in Cork. German master baker. They also do great croissants, cakes and proper pretzels.

    Arbutus Bread. Products and stockists on website. Very good bread, particularly if you like a chewy crust.

    The Alternative Bread Company. Great range of products, they make their own bread and sell other bakers products too and also supply shops and restaurants. Can't find a website to find stockists.

    Hassett's in Carrigaline make very good bread but their site doesn't say where they supply.


    In Cork we've lost:

    The Daily Bread. A short lived bread shop on North Main Street which closed down before Christmas. I think it was Hassett's bread they sold but they closed down, presumably, because people didn't support them - they'd prefer to buy bread in the supermarket and complain about the quality.

    Donnelly's Bread. An old fashioned family bakery on Shandon Street that closed down in 2007 (I think). I grew up on Donnelly's bread. RIP:mad:

    So, before we loose any more, please support what you have and that goes no matter where in the county you are.



    Also, good bread freezes very well and thaws quickly.
    I usually buy 2 or three loaves on a Saturday at the city market, half them and freeze them in paper, then plastic. Thaw in paper. Good bread for the week:D

    If you want good bread, GET OFF YOUR ASS AND FIND IT AND BUY IT.
    If you really like sliced pan and Cuisine de France, that's fine too.
    But please don't buy only mass produced bread and complain about the lack of good bread.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,931 ✭✭✭huskerdu


    I agree 100% with everything you are saying.

    But, I don't think it is impossible to get good bread if you look around you,
    A lot of Centras and corner shops all over the country stock from a local bakery.

    You only have to make a small effort.
    Rant warning!! :

    I realise that in certain parts of the country it may be pretty much impossible to get good bread but for the rest of you SEEK IT OUT AND PAY A BIT MORE FOR GOOD BREAD! Don't buy sliced pan and complain that it's rubbish. Support your local good bakery.

    If you want good bread, GET OFF YOUR ASS AND FIND IT AND BUY IT.
    If you really like sliced pan and Cuisine de France, that's fine too.
    But please don't buy only mass produced bread and complain about the lack of good bread.


  • Moderators, Category Moderators, Politics Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators, Regional East Moderators Posts: 12,108 CMod ✭✭✭✭Dizzyblonde


    pampootie wrote: »
    Could I ask you the recipe for that? I have the Aldi breadmaker and I use it quite a bit but have never found a recipe for white bread in it that comes out the way I like it. Mostly make wholemeal bread and pizza dough in it.

    Sure. It's baked on the French setting on my machine - that takes 6 hours.
    1 tsp yeast
    400g strong white flour
    15g butter
    1 tsp of salt
    290ml water


  • Registered Users Posts: 16,664 ✭✭✭✭the beer revolu


    huskerdu wrote: »
    I agree 100% with everything you are saying.

    But, I don't think it is impossible to get good bread if you look around you,
    A lot of Centras and corner shops all over the country stock from a local bakery.

    You only have to make a small effort.

    I was really just pre-empting someone saying "it's all very well for you living in a city with the reputation as the food capital but I live.........."


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,645 ✭✭✭Melendez


    This post has been deleted.


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