Questions should be about flour (wheat or any other kind) uses, storage, etc.
26
votes
7answers
3k views
What is the difference between various types of flour?
Is there a difference between the various types of flour that you see in the stores (i.e. Cake, Bread, and All-Purpose? Is it really necessary to stock 3 types of flour in my pantry or is this just a ...
19
votes
5answers
35k views
What is the best flour to use for pizza dough?
I've been making pizza dough and the recipe says to use "good quality flour" but I'm not sure what it means? Are there differences in quality between different types of flour and how can I tell?
17
votes
12answers
12k views
What is chickpea flour used for?
I bought a bag of chickpea flour once thinking (erroneously) that I could use it to make hummus. I've since bought dried chickpeas and made hummus the "right" way... but now I have no idea what to do ...
15
votes
4answers
1k views
Do I need to sift flour that is labeled sifted?
Is there really an advantage to sifting flour that I bought that was labeled 'sifted'?
13
votes
6answers
2k views
Is it important to warm the flour before making bread?
When I was taught to bake bread one of the tips I was given was to warm the flour first.
It's a step I often skip as I haven't really found a quick way to warm it through evenly (but gently) and I ...
12
votes
3answers
452 views
Is it okay to keep flour in the freezer?
Years ago I noticed I was getting little bugs in the flour that I kept in the pantry. To prevent this, I started keeping my flour in the freezer. I don't do a lot of baking, but I was wondering what ...
12
votes
4answers
23k views
baking bread with all-purpose flour
I'm a bread-baking novice and have acquired a vast quantity of all-purpose flour.
If I follow a typical bread recipe, for example one of these, but use all-purpose flour instead of the recommended ...
12
votes
3answers
3k views
How much difference is there between brands of flour?
How much real difference is there between flours (specifically all-purpose) such as King Arthur, Gold Medal at a considerable savings and a store brand which is even less expensive?
11
votes
6answers
463 views
Cup measurements: shake or scrape?
When you are measuring out your flour, sugar, etc with the measuring cups, is it better to
scoop and then shake the cup to get a leveled cup, or
scoop and then use a knife to scrape off the excess.
...
11
votes
1answer
3k views
How can you tell when flour has gone off?
I was just reading another topic about grinding flour where someone suggested that their flour supply would go off within two weeks if not kept in the freezer. I buy my flour in 20lb bags that last me ...
10
votes
4answers
2k views
What is the purpose of sifting dry ingredients?
What is the purpose of sifting dry ingredients (esp. with flour)?
I heard in one place that it was because this is the best way to mix them well. I heard somewhere else that this is a carry-over from ...
10
votes
3answers
3k views
How to make big, fluffy “Mexican-style” flour tortillas (without using any special machinery)?
Flour tortillas are so bloody expensive (and rare!) outside of the U.S. so I'd like to make my own. A friend taught me how to make some ages ago, but I stopped because they were always weird and I ...
10
votes
2answers
10k views
How can you make “All Purpose Flour” using home ground wheat?
We grind our wheat at home. Many recipes call for "All Purpose Flour" and we have been trying to find how to make our own "All Purpose Flour".
10
votes
2answers
3k views
How can I check if my flour is self-raising or plain?
If I have some unlabelled flour in the cupboard, is there a way I can determine if it is self-raising flour or plain flour, before cooking with it and just checking if the cake rises? :)
9
votes
2answers
1k views
Does white whole wheat flour need to be refrigerated?
I know that regular whole wheat flour needs to be refrigerated, but does white whole wheat flour also need refrigeration? I hate to use up the space in the refrigerator if I don't have to.
I have 5 ...
8
votes
3answers
606 views
Are there substantial benefits to grinding your own flour?
I've read that most of the nutrients of wheat are stripped for the sake of shelf life. Is this marketing propaganda or is there truth behind it? It was my impression that white flour (even ...
8
votes
3answers
1k views
Standard weight conversions for converting cups of flour to grams of flour?
I hate the idea of measuring flour using something as imprecise as measuring scoop.
What numbers do you treat as definitive/authoritative/canonical for doing weight conversions for different types of ...
8
votes
2answers
1k views
What kind of flour is needed for strudel/fillo dough?
In Hungary, they sell "rétesliszt", strudel-flour. What makes it better for strudel? Is it higher gluten? Lower? Softer? Harder? Which flour in a typical (USA) supermarket comes closest to rétesliszt?
...
7
votes
4answers
356 views
Can you overmix a gluten-free cake?
If you're making a regular cake, you add all the first ingredients (eggs, butter, sugar, ...) and mix everything well. When you add the last ingredient, the flour, you mix until it's just ...
7
votes
1answer
2k views
What is the correct ratio to make self-rising flour?
I have a recipe that I've used a couple of times that asks for self-rising flour. Unfortunately, I only have regular AP flour where I am right now.
I know self-rising flour is a mixture of AP flour ...
7
votes
3answers
4k views
What are the most effective wheat flour substitutes?
While not something I'm overly dogmatic about I try to keep my carbohydrate intake relatively low, especially during the day so as to not become tired.
I've found that in some recipes, particularly ...
7
votes
3answers
603 views
What type of flour should I feed my starter with?
Different sites recommend different flours for the feeding of my established starter, so I suspect it depends on the purpose, but I can't find a definitive answer. Should I be using the flour I plan ...
7
votes
2answers
263 views
How will less flour affect molten lava cakes?
I made some molten cakes the other day, using this recipe from Betty Crocker. However, it is very "cakey." The molten cakes I've had before in restaurants have had more of a "truffle" consistency. ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
How many cups of flour are there in a pound?
I have a recipe that calls for 5 pounds of flour, but I live in a country that sells their flour in 1-kg bags. So I put in 2 kg = 4.4 pounds... How many cups should I put in for the remaining .6 pound ...
6
votes
6answers
1k views
Where can I buy American style bread flour in Europe
I live in Germany, and all the flour here is made from soft winter wheat. I can get some durum semolina imported from Italy and sold as "hardwheat flour" (Hartweizenmehl), and that's about it. But ...
6
votes
2answers
5k views
What are the differences in bleached/unbleached flour for baking?
I've heard various rumors suggesting that using unbleached [wheat] flour is better than bleached [wheat] flour when baking (cakes, squares, cookies...). Is this true? If so, why?
6
votes
2answers
2k views
What is the 'best' flour to use for brownies?
Cake, Bread or AP? My goal is a 'chewy', 'moist' brownie. I have always used AP in the past, but am wondering if an alternative flour might improve the final result.
6
votes
2answers
358 views
How careful do you have to be with adding flour for kneading?
When you're working a dough (kneading or rolling out), instructions often say to flour the surface you're working on and your rolling pin or hands. This helps the dough to stick less. However, I ...
6
votes
3answers
18k views
Difference between Maida and All purpose flour
I'm baking tonight and I'm out of All purpose flour. I'm lazy to run out to the grocery store. Can I replace All purpose flour with Maida (Maida is better known to Asian Indians - we use it for making ...
6
votes
2answers
500 views
Do I really need pastry flour in my molasses cookie recipe?
I have a recipe for molasses cookies that calls for 3 parts regular flour to 1 part pastry flour for the flour component. It mentions that you can use whole wheat flour instead of pastry flour if ...
6
votes
2answers
2k views
What is 00 flour and when should I use?
I've made pasta before using 00 flour. I was about to use the same thing to make gnocci but I've noticed that none of the gnocci recipes mention the "00". Does it make a difference? Is one better then ...
6
votes
3answers
533 views
Baking bread with spelt flour, without using a bread pan
I ran out of "normal" wheat flour a few days ago, so I had to bake my bread with the closest thing - spelt flour.
I noticed the dough was a lot stickier than when using wheat flour, and when baked, ...
6
votes
2answers
85 views
Can I change the flour type of my sourdough starter?
I started my sourdough starter with rye flour.
But after some months I continued feeding it with wheat flour. I feel like there is less life inside than before.
Might it be due to the change in ...
6
votes
4answers
699 views
What Kinds of Recipes Should I Sift/Aerate The Flour?
We've talked about methods for sifting flour (http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/5364/how-to-make-sifting-palatable), and the purposes of sifting ...
6
votes
1answer
149 views
Flour alternatives for roux
I have recently been diagnosed with celiac, so no wheat flour whatsoever. Also, I am allergic to corn.... I have read that arrowroot would not work in a roux; it is not just the thickening I want, ...
6
votes
2answers
569 views
What grains (and in what ratios) go into a nine-grain flour?
Many recipes are available for making nine-grain bread, but they presuppose that you have nine-grain flour. We have a wheat grinder so we would like to use it to make our flour to make the bread.
5
votes
2answers
2k views
How to store flour
Someone gave us two 25kg bags of flour.
Which is kind, but we're not too sure how to store them in usable quantities. My other half went out a bought a load of plastic tupperware-type containers, ...
5
votes
7answers
2k views
What to do about beetle infestation of wheat products? How do we prevent reinfestation?
Today my wife went to make some bread. She noticed some very small insects in the whole wheat and regular flour. Upon further inspection, many of our wheat based products were infested with these ...
5
votes
2answers
3k views
How do I make my roux taste less like flour?
When I make a roux for soups and sauces it always ends up tasting like the flour. What is the correct way to make roux? How long does the flour need to cook out of it?
5
votes
3answers
608 views
Almond Flour pancakes
I have this really tasty recipe for pancakes that use almond flour and whey protein (along with Ricotta cheese and lemon). However, the problem is, these pancakes don't "flip". Does anyone have any ...
5
votes
1answer
390 views
Improvised self-raising flour
Say I just ran out of self-raising flour. What can I add to plain flour to make the equivalent?
5
votes
2answers
212 views
If I have much lower than normal humidity, how should I change the amount of flour that dough needs?
I made some rolls that came out dense, rather than light and fluffy, and with much thicker crusts than I would have preferred. After the second of 3 rises, the dough was much less sticky that I ...
5
votes
1answer
489 views
Why does adding extra flour help with high altitude baking?
When baking at high altitude it seems that most recipes advise to include a little more flour to the mix. Is it related to boiling point?
4
votes
2answers
317 views
what happens when one mixes flour into batter?
I have been mixing quite a bit of batter lately for various recipes, and I continue to see the same behaviour:
The flour clumps together as soon as it hits the fluid (beit milk, water, or anything ...
4
votes
3answers
4k views
How to mix a roux with stock?
My roux came out a beautiful dark brown. Then I began to slowly add chicken stock. The flour and water did not completely blend and I don't understand why not? The roux was very hot,but the stock ...
4
votes
2answers
6k views
How to get rid of the taste of flour in homemade bakery?
I usually get random cookie and cake recipes from the internet and try them. They are good but all of them have floury taste to me. Possible culprits are the flour I use and how I mix and bake dough. ...
4
votes
3answers
3k views
How much “alternative” flour can I substitute for white wheat flour?
Most of the bread and bagel recipes I use (such as no-knead bread) call for only white wheat flour. I'd like to integrate other flours (such as whole wheat, flaxseed, and buckwheat) into the recipes.
...
4
votes
2answers
341 views
Is there a technique for making larger batches of roux?
Following along the approach of freezing roux, I would like to make some in bulk. I am also trying to do more batch cooking for freezing and making 8 quarts of mac and cheese ends up taking a lot of ...
4
votes
1answer
520 views
What happens to pasta dough when it is run multiple times through the machine?
Before, when I made fresh pasta, the dough would become a little "brittle" and was hard to work through the thinner settings of my pasta machine. Then I saw a tip on a cooking show to put the dough ...
4
votes
2answers
586 views
Whats the difference between white and yellow corn meal. and all cornmeal or half flour half cornmeal
I usually make cornbread with white corn meal and no sugar. I like the no sugar part, but I want to experiment with the batter a bit. What are the following changes supposed to achieve:
Yellow corn ...
