Hubby busted up the bread cutter I bought and it was (for us anyway) a expensive piece of crap. I went with a bamboo one that had different spaces for three size slices. Well, due to the different sizes of bread, I couldn't get a snug fit of the sides so it didn't hold the bread steady, I kept getting the bread knife scraping on the bamboo as I cut and when I took out the messed up bread that wasn't cut straight and wiped off some of the crumbs, I ended up with a couple of splinters. Hubby busted up the sides and the end piece and I have kept the tray section to use to hold things for me, such as the measuring spoons, the small silicone cups that hold ingredients or a knife so I won't accidently knock them off the counter. I knocked off the small cup holding the yeast three times when I made bread the other day.
I can't cut a straight line to get a even slice of bread, hubby cuts them better except he cuts them way too thick. All I want are regular sandwich size thickness. Any suggestions? What do you use to cut your bread so they slices are the same thickness?
My husband is an expert bargain shopper of new items at second-hand shops. The 1st slicer he brought home 3 years ago is Slices Perfect (made in US): a wood frame with 2 horizontal slots for a hard plastic cutting board. Pick the slot for desired thickness, and slice the loaf end down/vertically (I cut off the first slice by hand, then use the slicer). Then he brought home a Presto Pride Bread Slicing System (made in Wisconsin). It is much larger, but we often store a loaf inside. Hard plastic, has never shed any bits like your bamboo slicer. It cuts horizontally, and you choose desired thickness. Both work well, but don't know where he got them or if they're still available. Good luck!
I'll come up with a "foolproof" bread slicer. It'll be the greatest thing since... um... sliced bread.
Sorry. Couldn't resist. LOL
Seriously though, the first question I would ask is about your knife. I'm a total knife junkie from way back. I've used really fine knives, and I've had to "make do" with crap knives, and I much prefer my Wüsthof Trident knives. They currently make a bread knife with double serrations (the serrations are serrated) but I'm waiting to see if they'll come out with one with a longer blade. Forschner makes one with a rosewood handle and a 14" blade, but it's not forged like the Tridents, so I'm waiting for them to up their game too. In the meantime, I'm using my 9" version with regular serrations.
A good quality, sharp knife is the first place to start. The next thing to do is make a few "throwaway" loaves (actually they could be saved for altus, or breadcrumbs) and practice. Knife skills are not something that people are born with, but with practice and a little caution you can get really good at it. Plus, if you learn to cut freehand, you have total control over your slice - a rich holiday bread like stollen or pannetone can be cut thin, or cinnamon swirl bread can be cut thick to make french toast, or you can fine tune the perfect sandwich slice.
With pre-cut slicing guides you're at the mercy of the manufacturer's idea of what works best. For example, if I make a meat and cheese sandwich for lunch with my nice chewy sourdough, I'm perfect with slices about 1/2" thick. But if I want to toast the same bread for a sausage and egg breakfast sandwich, I'll thin it down to about 3/8" per slice so I don't dislocate my jaw trying to bite through it. Italian, French, or multigrain breads served with dinner routinely get cut up to 3/4" thick, depending on the meal. If I want to make a sandwich out of ciabatta the height of the loaf is usually not enough to make a big enough sandwich, but if I cut a slice about 3" wide then cut that horizontally in half it works great. You just don't have that variability with a slicing guide.
I'm sorry, I really didn't answer your question, but as you've discovered, slicing guides break or wear out. Amazon currently has the Presto Pride system for about $100 - for that money I'd buy a good knife that would last me almost the rest of my life and a $10 bamboo (highly renewable resource) cutting board.
Electric meat slicer. Perfect slices every time.
I second the meat slicer. I’ve used mine for years, never sharpened, and still slices like new. Cleanup is easy. Brush off crumbs with a brush and done.
One might not be too surprised that this can be a challenge, given the common aphorism about sliced bread...
A few things...as MD suggests above, a good knife is essential...Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen has done some thorough comparison tests of serrated knives. I would start there:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWewefvCZXM
Next, letting the knife do the work by drawing it back and forth without a lot downward pressure with give straighter cuts, since it doesn't deform the loaf so much. This is particularly important as you cut through the upper half of your loaf (more bread to deform below the blade). Be patient. You can save the downward force for when you get to the bottom crust, which often takes a bit more effort to get through.
I could go into more details, but it would get a bit unwieldy to describe (knife blade at a tangent to the crust as you slice down the near and far sides of the loaf...blah, blah)...but the above should get you on your way.
A meat slicer also does work too. But the same principle applies there...let the blade do its work and don't use too much pressure pushing the loaf through...
I second Bikeprof suggestion to check out American's Test Kitchen review of 9 different bread knives, not only do they compare and review each knife, they explain which knife edge style works best on bread in general.
I bought their recommendation, have had it for a couple days, and the very 1st cut actually seemed like the knife dived to cut through the bread, meaning it just slid through so easily. I happen to be wearing a bandaid now lol, I got to end of the loaf and to steady the remaining smallish end for cutting, I had to grip whole thing which means move my finger as the knife starts slicing, the knife moved so fast through the bread OOPS.. lol
A good knife and practice.
Have you tried an electric knife? Slices well and cuts are even
Meat slicer does a great job. Many hear like the Chef Edge 610 - it is around $100. You can often find non commercial slicers pretty cheap on Craigslist. The commercial ones are even better, but are much heavier, and even used can go for more than $250.
This is a prior thread on using an electric food slicer for bread;
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/15902/ultimate-bread-slicer
Wild-Yeast
I bought it at Amazon, 8 inch Stainless Steel Serrated Carving and Bread knife by Kitchen Plus Home. Hubby was being a bit touchy about how much I was spending on my new "hobby" so it was a cheap price, only $9.
Hubby bought some bleached flour, I will take it and bake some loaves and use that for practice. And a bag of Gold Metal bread, I can use that, if it taste good we can eat it and if it taste lousy, no problem, it will be good to practice on.
I'll see if Amazon has the bread cutters that have been listed and see what the price is.
Thanks everyone for the help.