REASONS TO BUY
Bread is easy to remove from the pan
Light
REASONS TO AVOID
Vertical pan doesn't work for certain breads
Shakes while kneading
SKG Automatic Bread Machine Review
The SKG Automatic Bread Maker turned out to be a bit of a disappointment with its overall mediocre performance
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Our Verdict
Finishing in the lower part of the rankings, the SKG Automatic Bread Machine is one of our least favorite bread machines. We wanted to like this model with its compact vertical bread pan and a large number of presets, but it just couldn't deliver. It only is so-so at baking and is a little bit on the expensive side, with other less expensive models thoroughly outperforming it. The SKG grossly underperforms compared to the top-of-the-line models, so we would suggest you consider other models in your quest for a new bread maker.
Our Analysis and Test Results
The SKG Automatic Bread Maker costs $40-$50 more than some of the budget models and we found that we thoroughly preferred the budget models to this one. It shakes all over the place, causing us some concern for its overall durability.
The SKG has a hard time incorporating all of the flour and some of it burned during baking.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Bread Quality
The SKG got off to a poor start in our first baking assessment: white bread. There was a ton of leftover flour caked on the outside of the loaf that got burnt in the baking process, particularly around the middle. The vertical bread pan didn't seem conducive to mixing the dough thoroughly, performing exactly the opposite of our initial thoughts. The crust was more of a medium shade than other machines and it was fairly even in color, excluding the burnt sections.
The SKG continued its lackluster performance in our whole wheat test, with it showing signs of struggling and protesting while kneading and mixing the dough, which other machines handled without issue. However, the finished load did look alright in terms of appearance, though the top did flatten out a bit — the dough rose so much that it contacted the lid of the machine — and the crust has a nice even color.
The gluten-free didn't really rise, so you ended up with a much smaller loaf of bread than the other machines. The height was about the same as the others, but the finished loaf was only half the length, due to the vertical pan design. The color was pretty consistent in darkness, with the top being a touch lighter. Unfortunately, there was a decent amount of cornstarch that was caked on the side of the bread after the paddle failed to incorporate it and the top of the loaf collapsed slightly, leaving a depression in the middle of the bread.
Overall, we found this appliance to be fairly easy to operate.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Ease of Use
The SKG Automatic Bread Maker does have a handful of handy convenience features. It has a 15-hour delay timer, so you can get it all ready to go in the morning with non-perishable ingredients and it will kick on automatically so your bread is ready right when you sit down for dinner. It also has a keep warm function that will work for up to an hour after your bread is done baking, in case you are running a little late when it comes to eating.
It has suction cup feet to keep it in place while mixing and kneading, but we didn't find these to be all that effective, even though the SKG is one of the lightest bread makers we have seen so far. It weighs in at a mere 8.1 lbs. and has dimensions of 13"(H) x 11"(W) x 9"(D). While we didn't like the vertical bread pan all that much when it came to mixing, we did like that the handle locks down and makes it quite easy to dump out the bread once it has been baked. We also did appreciate the 15-minute power interruption protection and the included measuring cup, spoon, and hook to remove the kneading blade as well.
This machine has a plethora of baking profiles.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Features
The SKG Automatic Bread Maker does have some of the most preset baking profiles that we have seen in these products, numbering 19 in total. It has a setting for basic, quick, sweet, French, whole-wheat, rye, potato, oatmeal, beer bread, rice bread, gluten free, corn bread, dessert, mix, dough, knead, jam, yogurt, and bake. In addition, it also gives you the option to set the crust to be dark, light, or medium and pick the loaf size — 1.0, 1.5, or 2.0 lbs. options.
Value
The SKG is a poor value, pairing below average performance with a higher than average price tag.
Conclusion
We weren't fans of the SKG, finding it to be overall a bit disappointing. It's not the absolute worst bread maker we have seen so far, but it isn't far off from that distinction and we strongly feel that you would be better served by almost any other model in the review.
—
Austin Palmer and David Wise
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