Learn, everything and all about Flour in baking. About what kind, what types, the why and how behind flour.
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WHAT IS FLOUR?
Flour is any grain, pulse, cereal or nut that has been milled to a powder consistency to be able to use in any cooking or baking process.
WHAT IS FLOUR IN BAKING ?
Flour is a very generic term used in baking. It has various types and forms. Each kind of flour has its own properties. These properties will make us decide which kind of flour to use for which recipe or type of baked goodie. As a baker, we need to know what is flour, its kind, properties, and functions..
In traditional baking the most common flour is all-purpose flour, (which is from wheat, more on this, further in the post). Flour is the most vital ingredient to baking, and is almost impossible to make bread & pastries without flour. Yes, we do have gluten-free options, but I am not going there now. So, flour is a very important structural ingredient to any baked good.
All about other baking ingredients >> Eggs, Sugar, Leavening Agents
WHAT DOES FLOUR DO IN BAKING
- It provides texture & appearance - which comes from the kind of grain, the strength of flour & types of flour. The gluten it forms while reacting to other ingredients like eggs, sugar, and fats brings texture, and appearance to your cakes cookies, and other goodies.
- Contributes to the flavor depending on the grain used, types of milling. flour contributes to the flavor of a baked item.
- Provides nutrition most grain flours have protein carbohydrates and becomes an essential part of nutrition
- Acts as a binding agent – as it absorbs liquid, form gluten and helps in binding and bringing form to a baked product.
Hence we use flour to bind, and bring structure and body to a baked good. SO flour is an indispensable ingredient to a baked goods.
FLOUR IS USED TO BAKE JUST ABOUT ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE.- cookies, cakes, pastries, pies, tarts, and much much more.
The All Purpose Flour that we use in baking, is a product of milled soft & hard wheat flour. Ultimately, the flour that we use comes from wheat.
WHAT FLOUR DO WE USE IN BAKING - WHEAT FLOUR
In baking, the most common kind of flour used is all-purpose flour. The others are cake flour, self-rising flour, bread flour, and pastry flour. Furthermore, there are nut flours – almond flour, and hazelnut flour.
The most common flours used by a bakeshop are pastry flour, bread flour and cake flour, and all-purpose flour. The classification of these flours is based on the milling process and the variety of wheat utilized.
Wheat is the main grain, which is milled to obtain different types of flour for baking purposes. It is the most essential ingredient in baking. It is the only grain that contains enough gluten-forming proteins to provide the structure essential to baked goods.
For someone new to baking, using all-purpose flour is sufficient. Moreover, different types of flour are available, for use in different baked goods.
And to understand these, it is important to know the types of wheat which in turn contributes to the types of flour for baking. So you eventually pick up the right flour for baking the right type of baked item.
The main characteristic of a flour depends on the type of wheat it is milled from and the milling process it self.
More on how milling affects the final flour later in the post
TYPES OF WHEAT
- Hard wheat has more protein content, high in gluten content and contributes to strong flours. Primarily good for baking bread with yeast.
- Soft Wheats have fairly low protein content, resulting in less gluten and gives weak flours. These kind of flours are for cakes, cookies, pastries
Before going into the kinds of wheat flour, a small run through the wheat kernel composition because this determines the kind of flour.
The Wheat kernel
the wheat kernel consists of the bran, endosperm and the germ
- The Bran – is the dark brown outer covering of the kernel, it is seen in the form of brown flakes in whole wheat flour.
- Endosperm – this is the starchy part of the wheat and gets the starch content from the endosperm. it contains protein content. this is the part that is milled after removing bran and germ, giving white flour. this contains about 65 to 70 % of starch and 7 to 15% of protein.
- The Germ – this part of the kernel is high in fat. Flours containing germ spoils faster. hence these are sold separately
The Milling
the milling process breaks down the wheat kernel and almost 70% is milled into flour, separating parts of germ and bran. The current modern milling process is fairly complex. It needs to be understood, that repeated sifting and milling process, results in different grades of flours determining different protein content and strength content. on that note, there is another very important characteristic that bakers must consider while selecting their choice of flour and that is determined by the protein content and moisture absorption.
Here's what you need to know ..!
- The protein content in the flour depends on the type of wheat. For example : To get high protein flour, milling must start with high protein wheat. Milling processes affect the grades of flour. The inner part of endosperm produces less protein than the outer part. So to get high protein flour, only the outer part can be milled.
- Another important point is water absorption, a higher protein flour will absorb more water and vice versa
- Ash content - is an indication of the mineral content in a particular type of flour. The darker the flour color, the higher is the ash content.
FLOUR PROTEIN CONTENT CHART
| FLOUR TYPE | protein content | ash content |
|
|
|
|
| straight flour | 13 - 15% | 0.4-0.45% |
| patent | 11-13% | 0.35-0.55% |
| clear | 17% | 0.7-0.8% |
| high gluten flour | 14% | 0.5 |
| all purpose flour | 11 - 11.5% | 0.39-0.4% |
| pastry flour | 9% | 0.4-0.45% |
| cake flour | 8% | 0.3 |
This basic information is enough for a baker to understand what type of flour to use in which baked good. This again, is determined by the protein content which results in high or low-gluten flour. But basically, these are all derivations from wheat flour…
So here it is
TYPES OF FLOUR
STRAIGHT FLOUR
is made from the endosperm and is the flour just after the bran, and germ is removed. these go through various sifting processes to separate the grade. when these grades are recombined, it is straight flour.
BREAD FLOUR
Is also called patent flour, it is made from hard wheat and from the endosperm of the kernel. This flour is high in protein and good to bake bread and soft rolls. The protein content is around 12 to 15%.
CLEAR FLOUR
it is the endosperm that is left over after the patent or the bread flour is removed. this is darker in color and usually used in rye bread.
HIGH-GLUTEN FLOUR
This flour has high protein and high gluten content, used in hard crust bread, pizza doughs, and bagels. the usual protein content in such a flour is 14%.
ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
Is a blend of hard and soft wheat flour milled from the endosperm. The protein content is usually around 8 to 12 %. This is commonly used by home bakers. I USE gold medal flour, easily available here.
CAKE FLOUR
is a soft wheat flour, with high starch content, low in protein, and made mostly from the inner part of the endosperm. The protein content is around 6 to 9% and is used in cakes and cookies.
PASTRY FLOUR
is also low gluten, and low protein, and made from soft wheat, but it is a little stronger than cake flour. the protein is usually 9%. Used in soft pastry doughs like pies, croissants, and danish pastries.
Apart from this, there are graded flours, which is how flour is graded in Europe. However, you can still pick up the flour of your choice based on the protein. content that is clearly written on any flour brand package.
For a simple home baker all purpose flour, cake flour, and bread flour does the trick.
There is one more self-raising flour - This type of flour has leavening agents already mixed into it. some recipes use these. However, most of my recipes like traditional pound cake, best brownies & blueberry muffins use all-purpose flour, because of its easy availability. unless and otherwise specified.
Still have doubts on flour, then reach me on insta @sweetspotbakeblog or mail me at shri@bakewithsweetspot.com
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