Everything You Need to Bake the Perfect Loaf of Bread

A bread-making machine can handle much of the process for you–mixing, kneading, proofing, and baking with one device. Depending on the model, you can easily choose settings for different bread types or customize the crust darkness and loaf size. But in CR’s recent tests, we found that our most budget-friendly option was also the best one: Amazon Basics Programmable Bread Maker. Our tester found it intuitive to use and the best for getting bread to rise and produce crusty crusts and soft insides.

More bread makers here.

Bread recipes benefit from precision, especially when you’re measuring flour. Weigh your ingredients in grams using a food scale, which provides more accuracy than measuring them in cups. It’s your choice if you’d rather do this using an analog or digital scale–but CR found in our tests that our top analog choice was the most accurate, while our overall top pick was a digital food scale that was highly accurate at measuring very small amounts. Whichever one you choose, look for a food scale that features a tare function. An auto-shutoff function is also nice to conserve battery power on digital models. 

More food scales here.

Every baker needs a flexible baking spatula to scrape flour and dough from the sides of mixing bowls and ensure everything gets incorporated. It’s also a handy tool for removing sticky dough from the mixing bowl with less waste. Our top picks were lightweight, comfortable to hold and maneuver, and made from silicone. Even better: none of them cost more than $15. 

More baking spatulas here.

Proofing is a crucial step in bread-making when you leave yeast dough to rest and rise before you bake it. Cover your bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise. The wrap prevents the dough’s surface from drying out and forming a skin. 

CR bought eight brands of plastic wrap from Stretch-Tite, Saran Wrap, and others to bring to our labs to stretch, puncture, and test their anti-leakage performance. Our favorite wrap of all costs $5 and was strong and consistently ripped cleanly and evenly. 

More plastic wrap here. 

Sticky dough is difficult to work with and transfer to a Dutch oven or loaf pan. That’s why keeping a roll of parchment paper on hand is always a good idea, so you can prevent your loaf from sticking during baking. After CR tested 10 brands of parchment paper, we narrowed down our favorites to four, including one that costs less than $4 and didn’t allow oil to seep through to our pan. If you want to make your life even easier, choose pre-cut parchment paper sheets. 

More parchment paper here.

Once you get your dough into shape and let it proof, it’s time for the fun part: baking. A loaf pan is ideal for sandwich breads and other soft breads, but make sure you are purchasing the proper pan–if it’s too small, your dough can overflow; pans that are too large won’t help give your loaf shape. In our loaf pan tests, we found positive qualities in pans made from different materials, so you can choose among glass, metal, ceramic, or a stunningly ruffled ceramic pan. 

More loaf pans here.

Don’t risk burning your hands or arms because you’re so excited to see (and taste) your baked bread! A pair of oven mitts is essential–our favorites were comfortable to wear, had grippy fingers, and covered enough of our wrists and arms to keep us safe from oven burns. 

More oven mitts here.

You may think all bread knives are the same–until you test them (as we did in our labs) and find that some will mangle the challah, pumpernickel, or sourdough loaf you spent hours preparing, baking, and letting cool. After testing 10 popular bread knives from brands like Wüsthof, Mercer Culinary, and All-Clad, we found five that effortlessly sliced through different types of bread with fewer strokes and less crumbly mess. 

More bread knives here.

After putting in all of that hard baking work, it’s only fair that you treat yourself and your family to a pretty and practical butter crock that keeps butter soft and spreadable–which is perfect on freshly baked bread. We tested butter crocks from Le Creuset, Crate and Barrel, and more, and found some made a world of difference in our enjoyment of buttery bread. And isn’t that what it’s all about? 

More butter crocks here.