Which Slot Toaster Makes the Best Toast?
Vložit
- čas přidán 26. 07. 2024
- Equipment expert Adam Ried reviews toasters with host Bridget Lancaster.
Buy our winning toaster: cooks.io/2D8nU9N
ABOUT US: Located in Boston’s Seaport District in the historic Innovation and Design Building, America's Test Kitchen features 15,000 square feet of kitchen space including multiple photography and video studios. It is the home of Cook’s Illustrated magazine and Cook’s Country magazine and is the workday destination for more than 60 test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists. Our mission is to test recipes over and over again until we understand how and why they work and until we arrive at the best version.
If you like us, follow us:
cookscountry.com
/ cookscountry
/ testkitchen
/ cookscountry
/ testkitchen
My wife and I received a Sunbeam toaster as a wedding gift in 1971. Its always been in use and works perfectly, today.
THE BEST THOSE DAYS. THE SUNBEAM COFFEE MAKERS TOO
Unfortunately, they don't make things like they used to.
I’ve an early 70s Sunbeam Vista model with auto down and up. It’s been in use daily all these years and still produces excellent toast. We recently bought a new $70 toaster with wide slots for thicker bread and bagels which doesn’t measure up in any respect to the old Sunbeam.
The products that you reviewed and I bought because of your recommendations are so far the best! Keep up the honest reviews, it will keep you guys giving you trust from ppl for generations to come
A. Muhammad i have been slavishly buying their recommendations for years now, no regrets
Agreed - the exception is their garlic press recommendation is hated by so many (myself included) but they keep recommending it
I've become a kitchen equipment shopaholic, and I love it. I'm super satisfied with all your recommendations. Definitely guys, you are the best.
Stumbled on this test by accident and just watched it out of curiosity and was pleasantly surprised. Finally a review that's all about how the bread is toasted and not how the toaster looks. Don't know why, but in Europe the Breville toasters are sold under the name Sage. Bought mine (older model but with the same options and 2 normal slots) 3 or 4 years back and it hasn't disappointed me yet. Still working flawless and producing evenly toasted slices of toast. And I use it every day.
With one side of an English muffin, my toaster will throw it into the air, and sometimes it will land in the other slot. Makes for a great Sunday brunch drinking game.
Took a bit of time for the designers to get that parabolic action _almost_ right, I suppose. Too bad they didn’t perfect it.
You're never eaten mine they're like bricks you need a crane to help them out
See bricks
Sound like a toaster for gamboling let it shuffle the cards
I’ve had my 2 slot Dualit Toaster for 15 years. It still works beautifully!
Had seen this video before and were needing to replace your winner because it broke down after several years of use and bought the best buy on your recommendation. It has been working just fine. Thanks for your videos.
I was a bit reluctant to buy an "off brand" toaster, but the reviews on this one led me to take a chance.I was very pleased! czcams.com/users/postUgkxE7HOOpW0eh4vbVGAB_r_cURwoxZxpZPA The toast comes out evenly browned and I was surprised that the sides of the toaster do NOT get hot to the touch which is a great safety feature.I like the additional buttons for frozen foods, the emergency eject button, and the warming rack for rolls and other items.All in all, it was a good purchase and at the right price. Sure you can get fancier toasters, but for a premium price. This fulfills the basic duties of a toaster at a reasonable price.
This has been a bone of contention in our home, not really that deep🥴
But we have struggled over buying a good reliable toaster since our 20 year GE bit the dust .Thank you for helping solve our problem.
Love the show❣️
I love my Dash. The flying toast makes you giggle.
After 22 years my cheap $15 Black & Decker bit the dust. As I have started using the longer slices of bread you can guess the type of toaster that I wanted. You seemed to hit on all of the concerns that I have especially the depth. That is something that manufacturers should definitely work on. Thank you for your honest discussion of the various toasters out there. Now I can make an informed decision.
Great info, love Adam and Bridget segments!
We use a Sunbeam automatic radiant heat toaster made in the late fifties to early sixty's and I will take it any day over the modern ones of today!
Thank you for this great review of toasters! definitely looking to buy something like the dash clearview! i love the clear window so that i can monitor the doneness of my toast in the morning :)
I use a 1980s-era GE toaster. Best toaster I’ve ever had and it still works beautifully.
Thank you so much for your product reviews and comparisons. A lot of my purchases have been based on your reviews! Keep them coming.
For the future, study items.
Consumer Reports is a non profit, and cannot take ad promotion; thus, staying completely objective and free of influence from outside sources.
Love these equipment reviews, Thanks
About 40 years ago I happened upon a Toastmaster toaster at a yard sale. I researched its serial number - it was made in April of 1935 - and found that it was one of the very first pop-up toasters ever made. It does not have a thermostat but rather an escapement timing mechanism (old fashioned wind up clock type mechanism) that is controlled by a small ‘light/dark’ dial. It ticks like those old fashioned clocks - faster for lighter toast, slower for darker. The sides, top, front and back are heavily chrome plated steel. The sides, front and back metal itself is scalloped vertically about 1” wide each, to give it some style - very Art Deco looking. AND it still worked - well almost - I had to take it apart to repair the main spring - and it’s worked pretty much marvelously ever since. Now I realize it’s not designed for bagels and other really wide breads. It’s nichrome wire heating elements are very close together (yeilding a fabulous even heating next to the bread-no stripes ever!) and because you adjust the actual TIME of toasting and not a bi-metal heat sensitive thermostat, your toast comes out consistently - time after time after time. Bi-metal thermostats take time to cool off - if you pop in another few pieces of toast right after doing two, the second set will be less done as the bi-metals haven’t cooled enough in between tastings. I also realize that most toasters today take advantage of digital technology and may not even use thermostats anymore but I still feel what I have is a treasure. I did have to have it repaired once by a guy in NYC who does this kind of thing - (ToasterCentral.com) - he’d put on a new period cord. It’s gorgeous. It has style, reliability and functionality. It cost me I think about $3.00). My younger daughter says she wants it when I go. Today it’s 85 years old - 13 more than I. Now I ask you - what appliance do you still have in your kitchen that still works and is that old? Only saying!
They do not make things to last anymore...
I have (and use daily) a Panasonic microwave I bought 39 years ago!! Never any problems... and it STILL works great!!
@@michaelrutledge7048 did you have to get new glasses for the third eye you mysteriously grew?
@@babsblaney i wonder where all the old stuff is if it was built to last
I mean you keep bragging about your find but ok. Lol. I’m jealous!!!
Love my Dash! Perfect ciabatta rolls toasted each morning on bagel setting. Everything bagels toast evenly. English muffins toast perfect, cinnamon raisin bread toasts evenly. It's been about a year and the Dash performs like the day it arrived in my kitchen.
We finally replaced the Oster long slot after 15 years. It was as you demonstrated, we had a stripe on top and had to turn it around to get everything toasted, other than that, it lasted a long time. We replaced it with the Breville, A bit more. Excellent toaster, no more stripes, bagels and larger slices of bread fit well. Looks pretty and modern. Thank you for the review, made it easier to choose.
We got a Breville toaster oven for our housewarming/wedding gift and it's been 6 years since then, and it's still working great. It cuts down on that extra toast appliance and I can make up to 6 pieces of toast, or a combination of waffles, toast, rolls, etc. But, I can of course also bake in it, keep things warm, re-heat. It's awesome!
I’ve had the Breville toaster but with standard slots for about 5 years and still love it. I like the fact that it gently raises the toast up unlike so many of the lever operated units.
I fought with toasters for years until I bought a breville.
Just bought the Dash toaster and love it. We haven't the "toast ejection" problems described in past reviews; they've seemed to have solved that. It looks great.
Me too - bought the Dash after watching this. I love it - quick and consistent toast. The window is a fun extra.
I’ve had mine for over a decade. Note that the glass window is removable for cleaning when it starts getting dirty and hard to see through.
Thanks for the toaster recommendation. I really appreciated your honest review
I miss basic toasters from the 1970s. They had thin slots for basic bread slices, and were just built well. The heating elements were ribbons of metal, not wires, so they simply ran hotter than today's cheap toasters. They were also just built stronger, with thicker springs, levers, and parts. Want to toast artisanal bread? Just cut a thinner slice and cut that slice in half to use it with a vintage toaster.
Great hosts and perfect show
Great advice, very entertaining. I love Adam Ried!
I am in Canada and have been searching for a replacement toaster; was sort of committed to a Cuisinart, but fell in love with the Breville Bit More Toaster after watching your reviews. Thank you.
I have found a toaster oven to be best solution for all of the breads we either buy or bake today. I especially like ( in harvest time) yo be able to toast the bread and melt cheese and then add a nice big slice of juicy fresh picked tomato. This is my breakfast, lunch and snack during this season
See my comments.
Yes if you have space! but cramped in a small apartment toasters work better for some of us.
@@majoroldladyakamom6948 you want this random person to comb through almost 300 comments for your comments? just copy paste it into here. it would have taken less time than to type out 'see my comments.'
Love your shows!
Still using my old chrome-plated, Art-Deco Toastmaster for toast.. warts and all. Bagels are steered to the Toasteroven.
@Adam Barnes
You sick sick individual
This is EXACTLY what I needed to know. Thank you!
When my husband paid $$$ for our Breville I was mad. But then I tried it. Life changing toaster experience! Love all the features, especially the stay cool sides, the A Bit More button and, well, everything. Our old toaster was a Europace brand it made the toast absolutely fly out, usually onto the counter across from the kitchen island. Love not having to chase flying breakfast breads anymore.
she's such a pro keeping calm with this close talker screaming in her face
He's her boss
I got the Kenmore Elite 76774 4-Slice Auto-Lift Long Slot Toaster in Stainless Steel four or so years ago after going through several others and not being happy. While it took a little time to come up to speed on operation it make excellent toast, bagels, and English muffins.
After 5 years of making toast in a toaster over, we finally got a nice Cuisinart (regular size wide slot) toaster which works well
I can always count on ATK to find the best appliances! Thank you!
Regarding putting the bagel in the toaster cut-side out... I wonder if that's so when it pops up, you have an unobstructed view of the cut side to determine if it's toasted to the amount you like. As you point out, it's not very intuitive, and I can't imagine it has anything to do making the electrical engineer's job easier, so it must must be deliberate. And if it's deliberate, there must be a reason.
I had that Breville toaster and I would NOT recommend it. The features worked great but it behaved strangely after about a year's use and ended up causing the breaker to trip each time you tried to use it. It only lasted a little over a year, just after the warrantee expired. Looking at Amazon reviews, many others had similar issues. I'd stay away from that one.
I bought my first and last Breville appliance after my Breville blender crapped out after about 12 months. The blender sure appeared well made, heavy glass too. Cost a small fortune and gone after very little usage. Replaced with a cheesy blender (Amazon - maybe?) for $30+/- and still works perfectly for at least 10 years or more. You don't always get what you pay for. Your luck may vary.
I’ve burned thru a lot of toasters. The Breville is worth ever penny.
Love my Cuisinart 4 slice toaster. Use it every day. Always consistent.
That bagel setting on the Smeg actually sounds pretty neat. You could try toasting one side of two pieces of bread, then make a grilled cheese with the toasted sides in, for an extra crispy grilled cheese. Did the Breville have a bagel setting?
I have the Oster toaster and I like. It’s going 8 years strong.
Appaddict01 Ditto!!
So do I!
This really help thank you
I do kind of like the bagel setting on the one toaster, where it toasts just the one side of bagel / English muffin.
I wish I could find a f'ing toaster that just toasts evenly, and as dark or light as I like and doesn't cost $30 f'ing bucks or more. Like the toasters that we had when I was a kid! Jeez!
Go to goodwill for a vintage toaster...usually less than $5
I've bought a lot of my kitchen items based on their recommendations, but I'm starting to have my doubts about ATK. I bought this toaster but the BTA720XL that is shown in the demonstration doesn't accommodate large toast. The slots are only 5.75" long. The BTA730XL will fit a longer slice of bread, but it is sold as a 4 slice toaster, meaning it has 4 separate heating elements that leave the center of the bread untoasted, resulting in an uneven toast. That just isn't worth $100 dollars to me. This is a misleading recommentation.
Toasty love toasted bread especially biscuits in the morning with butter and honey oh my gosh sweet sins we have to have.Have a great day! And always enjoy your content and recipes.
I bought the Dash Clear View based on this review.
At less than half the price of your top pick and comparable performance, it's a no-brainer
Same here, still waiting for it to try...but I'm convinced...hope yours is doing well!
I had that same Breville toaster, it was a really nice toaster at first, but, it doesn't really brown all that evenly, the bread frequently gets caught under the openings as it automatically raises, and the toaster stopped heating up after 4 years of use. While it looks really nice and has a few nice features, like the Bit More button, not sure it's worth the money. Seems to be made of cheap parts inside. I wish some company would revive the Sunbeam toasters, they were made to last unlike any toaster on the market today.
I just gave my son our sunbeam toaster when he moved into his own place. I'm now searching for a better toaster, but from what I'm seeing, there's none that compare to sunbeam.
I have the same issues with my Breville. I came to this review to find a better toaster, but, alas, they recommended the Breville.
My experience with toasters for bagels are of two types. Those that add some time to the toasting, and those that reduce power for the uncut side. I will likely never buy a toaster that adds time to the toasting. Why -- on dark setting, the bagel button caused the cut side to burn.
I appreciate the review of the models, but not one mention was made about the toaster wattage. A toaster with 775 watts will take more time to deliver toast, than a 850watt toaster. The less wattage, the more the toast will dry out before being browned.
I own and have the Breville, it’s absolutely wonderful and toasts very quickly😍
I've had mine for a few years and it's work great so far.
That’s great to hear! I want to buy one before I move, glad to hear it works from many sources!
I’m only warning for your peace of mind. They crap out in months or a couple years. Read the reviews.
I have the Breville toaster, and I love it. Had it for over 8 years now. Got tired of the toaster oven barely lasting. It’s great for thick bagels or English muffins. Artisan’s bread does have to be cut in half to put in both slots, or it sticks out on top. I use mine every day for lunch, and four times a week to toast my English muffins for my tuna salad and salmon salad for dinner.
Y'all should check out the Balmuda steam toaster oven and test/review that
I have a toaster right now that sends the toast flying !
I had a KitchenAid KMT2115ER Toaster with Manual High-Lift Lever toaster I bought back in 2016, and it conked out today. Thought I paid a lot for it, so I checked my order history and realized I only paid $40. Now the price is $49.99. Can’t wait to buy the Dash Clear view one now at $49.52. One thing I love about shopping online, I am able to keep a record of how long I had it, how much it cost and what the price is now.
Dang . . . I was pulling for teh SMEG for the name if nothing else. Great timing, though . . . my toaster is, well, toast, so it's time for a new one.
We have the Breville, so obviously this was a great video !
To the people of the Test Kitchen could you possibly do maybe toaster ovens?
i have that Breville toaster. more money but it is great and about 4 years old now, we use it every day.
The really old sunbeam made toast with a different method and we're the best
Technology connections
I would love to know if there are toasters that toast faster than others.
i had the breville one for a while it worked really well but it then died within two months. Now i have the smeg one, it does have the problem with the toasts flying out sometimes on the floor…
I still have and use my parents toaster that I use at least 3 times a week and it's over 60 years old.
No problems with it. It toasts excellent and MADE IN THE USA.
Only 3 times a week? Gees ours get used at least 3 times a day!
Never thought I would watch a Toaster Competition
Nice review as always, however, you forgot to include the Sunbeam T-20 or T-35. I'm still trying to get my hands on one of those.. :)
Seems long over due for a remake with modern safety features. Technology Connections video "The Antique Toaster that's Better than Yours" czcams.com/video/1OfxlSG6q5Y/video.html
We have one. Perfection! And, yes, we replaced the line cord with a grounded (and thus polarized) cord.
The problem is years ago you could get a 4-slot toaster where the slots could fit slices larger than Wonder bread (yuk!) slices. You could at least fit in a slice of rye bread which was always oblong shaped. I wish they could find and test those. What good is a long slot toaster when there’s more than one person needing toast (usually 2 slices)?
I using a Krups standard size roaster I bought years ago after a Cuisinart I bought at Williams Sonoma broke. Luckily back then WS had a “lifetime warranty” of everything you bought from them - is that policy still the base? I like the Krups with it’s rotating dial-like handle for lowering and raising up the toast above normal to make it easy to grasp without burning my fingers.
To get the best toaster, you need to buy a 60 year old Sunbeam toaster on e-bay. I have my parents 60 year old Sunbeam. It is far superior to anything you can buy now, not even close. It will get passed on to our son. It has been used almost daily since the 50's. I would love to know how many tens of thousands of pieces of toast it has made, and will make.
It also depend on the moisture of your bread/bagel
The best thing to do after cooking is to nap or sleep listening to this awesome music Therapy :
czcams.com/video/yX-Bnyma10g/video.html
I have a krups compact toaster. Has a defrost setting, bagel setting. A stop button and a dial for light to dark. Slices sit low when done so if you press the lever up instead of down it raises the slices. Even has a cord cubby Got it as a 1st apt. gift in 2007. Works great but if it ever dies I think i will get that best buy
Love my Ginny's. I've had it probably 10 years. Still works great, it has a digital count down timer, so I know when to start my eggs. Snd I use my brain do the bagel setting isn't a problem foe me. Think I paid around 70.
We’ve had the Dash for a while and sometime the toast ejects like a rocket but we laugh more than anything else.
My daughter prays for the explosion of toast! Keeps us on our toes.
@@MeAndTheBusyBee Yes, we stand there at the ready with a large plate ready to catch flying toast. Nobody says, "toast up". It's more like "toast airborne".
We also have the Dash and it doesn’t launch the toast as much after it’s been used awhile.
I have the exact Breville - bought it 8 years ago now it doesn’t work want to fix it because I love it - if they still have that model I’ll get another one
My goodness, when did buying a toaster needed its own video review.
I love any of your shows. I don't care if it's recipes, tips or reviews. I can't see myself ever buying a toaster, yet here I am enjoying every minute 😊
It’s great that you did a link to the winner but how about a link to the best buy. Also, the units you chose are good but won’t work in my kitchen. I need a unit with the controls on the short side. I can’t have mine facing the long way due to space constraints. That’s also something you need to consider!
I think you should also put up a link for the best buy toaster!
While this was very helpful, I like the format their Gear Heads segments used, where they go through test by test and showing what happens
Scientific Review , Well Done ✅
I bought the Breville, but the $79 one has the short regular slots. The one with the long slots is $99 from Amazon.
I have the one with short slots. What I do with Artisan bread is cut it in half and use both slots. Not so good if you want to toast two slices but, I don’t mind.
Please, may I knowe if the Kitchen aid has ever been tested? Thank you!
Does any longs slots have option to switch off one slot only to save power? Or both slots will switch on always?
I went to the zoo today and saw some toast in a cage.
They told me It was *bread in captivity.*
Your try at humor eludes me.
As Homer Simpson might say..."Dough!"
@@melaneymattson3733 I guess it didn't *rise* to the occasion!
Ouch!!
Hah! 😉 Kneaded to find you here, lol. See my comments?
Patiently awaiting your next vlog, Graham... 👏👍👏
Omg since the addition of a sleek new air fryer I've been looking to get rid of my four slice toaster as to be honest it gets used 20 or less times a year, has a junk trap door that easily comes open versus a crumb tray. Purchased my first one on Amazon great reviews but would burn one side of the toast barely cook the other. Now just tested my second purchase it gets the job done but unevenly. Lol shouldn't have to spend over $200 on a two slice toaster but now I'm leaning on the Cuisinart CPT-T40 2 Slice Touchscreen Toaster.
:10 seconds in "I bet the Breville is the winner". Good brands are good brands. Oxo and Breville are always good buys!
Breville always wins.
Haha, I bought the Breville and it’s far from great. No longer heats evenly (about 2 years old). It’s on the curb outside. Replaced with Revolution R180. SO much better!
I’m Off to buy that Breville model. Thank you!
I don't think the toaster in your link is the winner. The link is to the narrow version. You need to switch over to the $99 version once you get to Amazon's page to buy the one reviewed.
Did I miss it or did you forget to add the complete list of products tested? What is the brand and model of the black one (2nd place), please?
Dash clear view
Your link takes me to a Breville toaster that is $79.95 but seems to be a single slot toaster.
They do have a choice for an extra long in this same toaster but at a higher price. could you clarify please? Thanks
I am in love! 1:30
I had actually bought the Breville (their top choice), and was disappointed with it. There's a big strip in the middle where there's no heating coils, so if you have wide slices, they won't be cooked evenly.
Brningpyre, you can't know how happy I am to see your reply. I believe that this is the 3rd time that ATK has recommended the "A Bit More" toaster. (Although, I believe that the last time, it was THE winner, with no "Best Buy" model also featured.) And, this is the 3rd time that I have pointed out this enormous failing in that model. I don't know if they'll ever acknowledge it, or not.
Generally, I'm very happy with Breville products. And, ATK is so precise in how they carefully examine every possible feature, and function of appliances. How they continue to miss this one is baffling.
In San Francisco we're known for our love of French bread, and "rounds" are far more popular than long, more slender loaves. I've warned several people about it.
Absolutely agree! I bought the Breville based on ATK’s high recommendation & it is terrible. The ends of a long piece of toast burn & the center doesn’t brown at all. A wide, white, untoasted section across the middle. I have to cut the slice in half & place all the way to the outer edges of the slots, cut side down. Very disappointed.
@@Patriotgranny I appreciate ATK, for their recipes AND product evaluations. However, this one is a mystery, to me.
Their presentations seem to cover every conceivable detail in the testing of kitchen wares. How their battery of determined "testers," can possibly make a gazillion pieces of toast, and NOT NOTICE that their perpetual "winner," doesn't toast the middle of a longer slice of bread, makes no sense.
That's especially mind boggling, when the introduction to the presentation included comments on the popularity of "Artisan" bread, over standard smaller slices.
Caty Lynch I would hate to think that their endorsement of this product is in response to any “inducement” from the manufacturer? I echo your sentiments that after hundreds of tests, that this flaw wasn’t detected by the testers. I just don’t believe that.
@@Patriotgranny The possibility of "inducement" occurred to me, too. It also makes me question their claims about the thorough nature of their testing procedures.
They discuss toasting artisan bread. Been making my own Jewish Rye no knead bread for many years. My favorite way of toasting involves no toaster purchase. Been using my cast iron skillet for twenty years. Normally I like a little butter or some EVOO on the untoasted bread. Then go LOW AND SLOW for about ten minutes on each side. I’m all about the texture of my rye toast. I’m sure most are thinking they don’t have this kind of time for making breakfast. But for me it’s my coffee time whilst I’m making the toast.
My SMEG toaster is amazing. And yes, I only want one side of the bagel toasted!
Only toasting one side of a bagel is fine, but it's weird the the SMEG makes you reverse the sliced halves from their position when cut.
Apparently since this video was posted, Breville changed the toaster. The slots on the toaster in the video are long enough for Artisan bread, while the BTA720XL Bit More in the video has long slots. Apparently this is actually the BTA730XL, not the BTA720XL and it's considerably more expensive.
I have the one that would have won..excellent and it can be used to train your reflexes.
How do you know if you want "a bit more" until it pops? Does it suck it back down, toast a bit more then pop it back up? Because that would be cool!!
What gets me about toasters is that most of them only toast half a slice of bread at a time. I usually toast mine on the next to the lightest setting, then turn the toast over and toast it again. Usuallly turns out perfect that way.
Unfortunately this is true. is it REALLY that hard to make 'em like they used to?
@@ibleebinU … Yeah!
Can you review toaster ovens please?