With a company history dating back over 100 years, it is no surprise that many people trust Sunbeam as a brand. In the last decade however there has been some uncertainty over the companies future, but it seems like these issues have sorted themselves out as the company seems to be doing well now. Today we are going to have a look at the Sunbeam 5891 bread maker which was released around 2004. Can it still stand up to the newer and flashier models? Lets take a look at that below.
Product Features:
We kick things off by taking a look at the overall design of this model. Like many models from this era, the entire unit is a gloss white color. The control panel is on the front of the machine, and this is set against a grey triangle trim. The lcd sits in the center of the control panel area, which is surrounded by the main controls either side. The control buttons are color coded, which is a nice little touch compared to some of the competitors of that time period. Above the lcd is a small writeup of all the main recipes for convenience. The Sunbeam logo is in red at the bottom of the machine, so it certainly is not too prominent or overbearing. On the top of the unit is the viewing window, which is quite large compared to what you will find on more recent models. The 5891 is not too big, and it has dimensions of roughly 14″W x 19″D x 13.5″H. Aside from that there is not a whole lot to really talk about with the design. It is quite simple, and still looks ok despite being over ten years old.
Now let’s talk about some of the features this machine has. The 5891 can make two different loaf sizes including the medium 1.5lbs and the large 2 lbs. This model has 12 different recipes to pick from including Basic, French, Whole Wheat, Quick, Sweet, Expressbake (1.5lb), Expressbake (2.0lb), Dough, Jam, Cake, Sandwich and Bake. There are the standard three crust types to choose from including light, medium and dark. Being on the cheaper side of the market, this model produces vertical loaves of bread. If you want to get a machine that makes the standard store bought loaf shape, then you will unfortunately need to invest a lot more for this kind of functionality.
A built it timer is included in this model, and it can delay the start up to 13 hours. The baking tin is nonstick coated, but Sunbeam do advise you not to put it in a dishwasher or use metal utensils to get the bread out. The Sunbeam 5891 is powered by a 600watt motor which seems to get the job done. This should be fine for most kinds of dough, although it has been know to take a bit of strain under denser varieties. Since it is a vertical loaf pan there is only one paddle in the bottom, but this is somewhat standard for a vertical bread maker.
Now how well does it perform? Since it is over ten years old, there are literally thousands of reviews on this particular mode. The bulk of them seem to be from happy customers, who are mostly pleased with the taste of the finished bread loaves. The crust and textures are also mostly praised, so this machine seems to offer some solid results. The Expressbake recipes are also supposedly work quite well, although the bread is said to be quite dense due to the shortened rise times. This is to be expected since the machine can churn out an entire loaf in around an hour on this setting. Cooking times are somewhat standard for the other recipes, with Basic taking around 3 hours to finish, and French bread taking around 3 hours 45 minutes for example.
Once the machine is finished the cooking cycle, it reverts to the Keep Warm mode which will function up to an hour. However you should try and remove the bread soon after it is finished otherwise it could begin to get soggy.
There have been some reports of collapsing loaves, which is not uncommon when it comes to bread machines. A lot of these reports seem to be down to the the recipes included with this model. Many folks have said that switching to recipes that require a little less yeast or water has been said to fix some of these issues. It doesn’t seem to be a problem for the majority though, but we feel it is worth mentioning. Perhaps read up on a few user reviews first if you are serious about buying this model.
So that is a quick look at the Sunbeam 5891 bread maker. You can still find it for sale in some places such as Amazon, with a retail price of around $60-$70. At this price it is still competitive, but paying any more than that would be too much in our opinion. It comes standard with a 1 year warranty.
User Manual: You can find the user manual of this particular model over here.
Pros:
- Affordable
- 12 Recipes
- Delay timer
- Keep warm
Cons:
- Some reports of collapsing loaves
Summary:
This Sunbeam bread machine is a little old now, but still competes against some newer models. It has a range of different recipes, and the price tag is quite acceptable for a cheaper model. If you are looking for an entry level model, then this one might be what you want. You can get more info on this product over at Amazon.
| Our Rating: |
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| 3.5 |