Bowing to my family's bread preferences I've now found another use for our breadmaker. Its very good at making dough for breads made with the yudane (or tangzhong) method. I definitely wouldn't have the patience to make this kind of dough by hand as it's particularly laborious compared to other breads - lots of gluten, so particularly light and fluffy. I shape and cook the finished dough in a regular oven.

I guess out breadmaker fulfills the role of a KitchenAid in other homes. I prefer it as it has considerably more grunt than this kind of mixer. The cooking feature has become a bonus rather than the primary function for us.