Kenwood SM 406 Edelstahl > Reviews > The latest kitchen gadget in Morgenhund Towers

Author's product rating:   

Performance	Excellent
Ease of use	Very easy
Durability	Long
User's Manual	Good
Value for money	Excellent

Advantages:	Can be stored vertically, looks good
Disadvantages:	No removable non - stick plates  -  makes cleaning a bit fiddly

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

As I had a voucher for my local ironmonger's - which happens to rather fortunately be a Le Creuset stockist - which was due to expire and couldn't find any Le Creuset stuff that I really wanted for the sum of the voucher I decided to plump for a sandwich toaster instead. I had not bothered to buy one in Austria as the sandwich bread was so tasteless, but with a wholemeal sandwich loaf now being available at last in the supermarket I go to, I thought why not.

I was originally very tempted by the SM420 series, which was being sold for EUR 29.99 (ca. GBP 20) whilst the SM406 was EUR 33 (GBP 22), and the differences appeared to be only cosmetic, although I went for the SM406 as it was in black and stainless steel rather than white. The SM420 had also got the added feature that the plates could be removed for cleaning - this seems to be the biggest bane usually, that sandwich toasters do not seem to be very easy to clean. However, as they explicitly said that the removable plates were not to be put in the dishwasher (this would have been the main attraction of the SM420!), I went for the SM406 in any case.

Most people are fairly familiar with sandwich toasters and how they work - so I'll not give a lecture on that. Comparing the two I was initially hard pressed to see any difference other than a purely cosmetic one - and of course the removable plates, as both sandwich toasters were designed to make two toasted sandwiches in one go - which is certainly more than adequate, even if you are having more than one person eating toasties in any one go.

The SM406 was more powerful (1200W maximum wattage compared with the 760W of the SM420) which ultimately means it heats up more quickly. Prior to the first time you use it, it is important to "proof" the sandwich toaster with some cooking oil - this is needed to help ensure that the non-stick plates remain non-stick.

So how does it fare? It takes about 4-5 minutes for the sandwich toaster to warm up - there are two indicator lights on the top of the sandwich toaster which tell you that it is warming up (red indicator light) or has warmed up and is ready to use (green indicator LED). Depending on how toasted you like your toasted sandwich and also the ingredients inside the sandwich, you should toast sandwiches for between 3 and 8 minutes according to the instruction booklet - and they advise not to overfill the sandwiches (to make clean easier so that ingredients don't seep out of the sandwich toaster). To ensure that the sandwiches are adequately sealed, it is advisable to use the fastening clip, which then ensures that the two halves of the sandwich fuse together.

Cleaning is relatively simple - you do have to wait for the sandwich toaster to have cooled down and then use a wet soapy cloth - although then wiping down with water is advisable unless you like the taste of fairy liquid. Removable plates would have been a nice extra, but as they are not really dishwasher-proof they are something I can live without.

The instruction manual is adequate enough - there is no real need to go overboard on something as simple as a sandwich toaster.

It is hard to eulogise about a sandwich toaster - although the SM406 seems to do the job pretty well - I have had some very tasty stilton and rye bread toasted sandwiches, and also ham, Wensleydale and banana - although it is difficult not to over-fill these ones! The one problem is that to get the sandwiches golden on the outside you do need to use butter - they actively advise against using low fat spreads - they apparently can cause problems with the non-stick coating of the sandwich toaster.

All told the SM406 looks good and does the job well - so no complaints from me. Usefully it can be stored vertically, ideal if you do not have a lot of space in your kitchen - not a problem I have, but it still can make a difference.