Ambiano Bread Maker

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Remember when baking was all the rage a few years ago? My social media feed was filled with photos of my friends’ homemade bread loaves, rolls, cinnamon buns, cakes, and more. While the craze has died down and it’s a lot easier to find flour and yeast in the baking supply aisle at the grocery store these days, I still have a few friends who continue to bake as a hobby, and I still occasionally see pictures of bread in my newsfeed.

Baking bread — whether you make it by hand or in a bread maker — can be a hobby for some people. For others, it’s a way to enjoy baked goods without added preservatives or potential allergens such as gluten.

Bread baking also remains popular today because it’s economical. When prices go up at grocery stores, some people view baking their own bread as a way to take some of the bite out of their grocery bill. The New York Times recently reported that an increase in the sales of bread makers that began when the pandemic hit has not really died down, even now that we’re a few years out. People began making their own bread because of grocery store shortages, but now they’re still making their own bread because it’s cheaper. The price difference can be especially significant if you prefer organic, healthier, or allergy-friendly ingredients.

It’s not just inflation that has driven sales of bread makers. The New York Times also reports in the article link above that influencers on TikTok have talked up the machines as well. (TikTok seems to drive a lot of sales trends.) Sales of bread makers in the U.S. were up 20% in 2022 compared to 2021, and when older bread makers show up on thrift store shelves they don’t last long.

If there’s one thing I know about Aldi, it’s that the discount grocery store loves a good trend. And if there’s any doubt whether bread makers are a hot item now, consider the fact that Aldi is selling its own model as a limited-time special.

This caught my attention. My mom used a bread maker often in the 1990s (the previous heyday of bread makers), and I used one during my college years and still occasionally bake with it. My old Toastmaster bread machine even has a dent on the outside from when it fell out of the family minivan during a college move, and it miraculously still works, although my dough doesn’t rise as well as it should anymore, so it’s probably time for a new machine.

I was curious about the Aldi bread maker, so I picked one up and put it through the paces at home.

The Ambiano Bread Maker (Product Code: 709814) is an Aldi Find, so it’s only in stores for a short time. Each store receives one shipment, and after that sells out, it’s gone unless Aldi decides to bring it back at some later point. Aldi does not offer online ordering for products not currently in stock at your local store.

The Aldi bread maker cost $49.99 at the time of publication.

Bread makers on Amazon, at the time of writing, started at around $65 and went up into the $100s, with a few models priced at more than $200. That makes the Aldi machine a good deal.

Here’s more information about the machine, according to the box and the manual:

• Features 19 programs (recipes included), including gluten free baking, jam, and yogurt
• Offers 3 loaf sizes
• Offers 3 browning levels
• Includes measuring cup, measuring spoon, and dough hook
• Features an LCD display
• Includes nonstick baking pan
• Offers keep warm function for up to 60 minutes
• 600W
• Comes with a three-year warranty

The warranty is serviced by Protel, a common Aldi warranty service provider. For warranty service, call 1-855-754-8297 or email Aldi-US@protel-service.com.

Warranty information. (Click to enlarge.)

Unboxing the Bread Maker:

What comes inside the box.

Looking inside the bread maker. To insert or remove the dough container, twist it according to the arrows printed on the back interior of the machine.

The bread maker comes with the machine itself, plus a manual and a warranty sheet. In addition, the machine has several accessories:

• A dough container
• A dough hook
• A measuring cup
• A measuring spoon
• A dough hook remover

The options on the control panel. (Click to enlarge.)

This bread maker is a little shorter and maybe a little more squat than my old bread maker. It also comes with a lot more bells and whistles. The control panel offers 19 different options as follows:

1. Basic — for normal bread dough.
2. Quick — for bread dough with a shorter baking time. The manual says this bread is slightly more moist and uses baking powder and baking soda.
3. Sweet — for breads with fruit juices, coconut flakes, raisins, dried fruits, chocolate, or extra sugar.
4. French — for light, fluffy bread made with fine flour with a crispy crust. Not suitable for recipes that require butter, margarine, or milk.
5. Whole-Wheat — for doughs with a larger proportion of whole wheat, rye, oat flour, or bran with a crispy, thick crust. This program includes a soaking period so coarse ingredients can soften.
6. Rice Bread — add cooked rice and flour at a ratio of 1:1.
7. Gluten Free — use gluten free flours and baking mixes. Gluten free flours take longer to absorb liquid and ferment differently than gluten flours.
8. Dessert — suitable for kneading and baking foods with more fat and protein.
9. Mix — for mixing dough ingredients.
10. Dough — for preparing yeast dough such as dough for rolls and pizza.
11. Knead — for kneading dough such as pizza dough.
12. Cake — for cakes with baking soda or baking powder.
13. Jam — for making jam and marmalade from fresh fruit.
14. Yogurt — for making yogurt through fermentation.
15. Bake — for adding baking time. Use this program if your bread is not baked through after baking.
16. Sticky Rice — for making sticky rice.
17. Fermented Rice or Rice Wine — for making sweet fermented rice.
18. Defrost — for defrosting frozen food before baking.
19. Toast Nuts or Stir-Fry — for processing (kneading and baking) dried fruit ingredients such as peanuts, soybeans, etc.

The manual has no-frill recipes and directions for everything, so while you could use your own bread machine cookbooks or recipes, you don’t need to.

Preparing to Use the Bread Maker:

As with many small appliances, production residues may still be present and can cause an odor the first time the appliance is used. The manual states this is normal and does not indicate the appliance is malfunctioning. The manual instructs to bake for about 10 minutes with an empty dough container before baking your first loaf of bread. This will remove production residues.

To do this, place the bread maker on your kitchen counter, a table, or other stable, smooth surface. Keep a safe distance from walls and cabinets to prevent damage from rising steam. Open the lid and place the dough hook on the drive shaft in the dough container. Close the lid. Plug in the device. The bread maker will emit a beep. Press MENU several times to select program 15. Bake. Press the down arrow on the control panel several times to set the timer to 10 minutes. Press START/PAUSE/STOP to start the program. When the timer is done, a beep will sound 10 times. The appliance will switch off. Unplug the machine and allow it to cool.

Then, clean all parts. Wipe the housing, lid, and baking chamber with a slightly damp cloth and let all parts dry completely. Clean the dough hook, dough container, measuring cup/spoon, and dough hook remover with a clean, damp cloth. (I washed these removable parts with mild dish soap and rinsed well.) Dry everything thoroughly.

Helpful hint: to remove the dough container from the machine, turn it counterclockwise to detach it from the motor unit. To put the dough container back, turn it clockwise until it locks into place.

Using the Bread Maker:

The manual recommends using only instant dry yeast. Active dry yeast and fresh yeast are not suitable for this bread maker. I purchased a jar of Fleischmann’s Bread Machine Instant Yeast from a large traditional grocery store, but Aldi sells instant yeast in small packets in the baking supply aisle. I prefer to use the yeast from the jar because bread recipes call for specific amounts of yeast, and it’s more convenient to measure it from the jar than to deal with the small quantities in the packets. However, if you’re not going to be doing a lot of baking, the Aldi yeast packets might work for you. Just be sure to get the fast rising instant yeast packet and not the active dry yeast packet. Also keep in mind that most leftover yeast needs to be refrigerated after opening.

The manual also recommends using high-gluten flour. This is typical good practice for bread makers. Any flour at the grocery store that is labeled for bread machines or for bread making will work. Aldi does not sell bread machine flour. I picked up some Pillsbury Best Bread Flour at a traditional grocery store. I’ve also used the King Arthur brand in the past, which costs a little more. While you can use regular flour in a bread maker, your bread may not rise as well.

It will take me a while to try all the different features on this bread maker, but for its trial run, it made sense to start with the basic loaf.

All ingredients for a basic loaf added. Note how the yeast is added into a small well in the flour.

The basic loaf requires the following simple ingredients: water, oil (I used vegetable oil), salt, sugar, flour, and yeast. One of the nice things about making homemade bread is that as long as you have the right type of flour and yeast, you pretty much always have ingredients on hand to make bread.

This machine does offer three different sizes for your bread loaves, and the recipes list the specific amount of ingredients needed to make each size. That does mean you have some odd measurements, such as recipes that require 1.35 cups (320 milliliters) of water. I found the measuring cup that comes with this machine to be helpful when adding water because it has milliliter markings.

As is often the case with any bread maker, it’s important to add the ingredients to the dough container in a specific order. First, add liquid ingredients, then sugar and salt, and then the flour. Add the dry yeast last. The manual explains that ingredients must be added in this order so the bread maker can mix them properly. The yeast must not come into contact with salt or liquids, so form a small well in the flour and add the dry yeast to it.

The display after selecting and starting the basic loaf program. The timer indicates the basic loaf in a 1000-gram size (program #1) will take three hours and five minutes to complete. Note the arrows pointing to the large size and medium crust.

It was an easy process to add all my ingredients to the bread maker. Then I shut the lid, plugged it in, and selected program 1: BASIC for the basic loaf. It immediately began to mix the ingredients.

Right after starting the program, I also made sure my loaf size and color settings were set accurately, in this case to the largest loaf setting and a medium crust. To do this, simply press the WEIGHT and COLOR SETTING buttons until the arrows on the display point to where you want them.

Then I let the machine do its thing, alternating between periods of resting, mixing, rising, and finally baking. If you’ve never used a bread maker before, be aware that it does make some quiet noises while mixing the dough and that is normal. It wasn’t long before my kitchen had the pleasant scent of fresh dough and baking bread.

Basic loaf dough after a few minutes of mixing but before rising. While it can be tempting to open the lid to check the progress of your bread, try to avoid lifting the lid when the dough is resting or rising, as the warm air inside the machine helps with rising.

This made a nice loaf. It rose well, coming all the way up to the window in the top of the bread maker. I set the crust to the medium setting, and it was lightly browned and crispy, while the top was soft and golden.

The finished bread.

Getting this out of the bread maker was a cinch, although it did leave a small amount of bread stuck to the dough hook, but that wasn’t a big deal. I tried using the dough hook remover accessory to remove the dough hook for more thorough cleaning after baking, but so far I haven’t been able to pry it off.

A little bread stuck to the dough hook.

Ready to slice and eat.

Ready to serve.

I plan to try making some other things with this bread maker, including quick bread, French bread, and maybe some dough for pizza or rolls. I’ve never made jam or yogurt in a bread maker before, but if I’m feeling adventurous I might try those as well.

So far, this machine seems to work well and I’m looking forward to trying some other things with it. I’ll update this post with any new developments.

The bread maker on my kitchen counter. It looks a lot nicer than my old, dented bread maker from my college days.

The Verdict:

The Ambiano Bread Maker is an affordable option if you’d like to start making your own bread. It offers 19 different programs for making basic white loaves, whole wheat loaves, French bread, quick breads, gluten free bread, jam, yogurt, and more. It also has options for mixing dough for rolls or pizza. We had success making a regular white loaf and are looking forward to trying out some of the other features.