Questions tagged [flour]
Questions should be about flour (wheat or any other kind) uses, storage, etc.
374
questions
34
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7
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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 ...
32
votes
9
answers
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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?
26
votes
7
answers
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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 ...
21
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16
answers
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What is chickpea flour used for? [closed]
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 ...
20
votes
10
answers
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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 ...
19
votes
3
answers
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Does flour have yeast?
This feels like it should be an easy question to find an answer to, but all I'm finding are unreliable sources saying both yes and no.
I'm referring specifically to any kind of store-bought flour used ...
18
votes
7
answers
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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 ...
18
votes
2
answers
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How risky is it to eat raw flour, as in uncooked dough?
Does eating raw flour or doughs containing raw flour pose a significant food safety risk (i.e., greater than other dry goods or ingredients in your kitchen)? If so, are there particular cooking or ...
17
votes
5
answers
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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'?
16
votes
10
answers
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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 ...
16
votes
3
answers
29k
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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?
15
votes
6
answers
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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 ...
15
votes
1
answer
2k
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Can I make cornbread without flour?
I am in the UK, but acquired a taste for cornbread from previous visits to the US (it is almost unknown here).
I’ve successfully made cornbread in the past and have quite a lot of cornmeal in my ...
14
votes
3
answers
72k
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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? :)
14
votes
3
answers
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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 ...
13
votes
13
answers
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Create my own high-gluten flour by mixing vital wheat gluten and bread/AP flour?
Has anyone had success with giving their bread or all-purpose flour an extra gluten kick by adding vital wheat gluten? I would like to know what ratio to mix the the two ingredients with, or perhaps ...
13
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6
answers
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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.
...
13
votes
3
answers
4k
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Why is my Taiyaki (Cake that looks like a fish) too hard and dry?
I was making taiyaki, and most of my friends said that the dough is too hard and dry. I have:
2 cups cake flour
4 tablespoons sugar
6 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup of milk
1/3 cup water.
I use an ...
13
votes
6
answers
19k
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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 ...
13
votes
3
answers
2k
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Is flouring meat necessary in stews (specifically ossobuco)?
I'm specifically wondering this in the context of ossobuco, but this probably goes for a range of stew recipes. Every ossobuco recipe I've come across tells you to dredge the meat in a (light) coating ...
12
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8
answers
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What is the best way to turn soup into stew without using flour?
I was hoping to make stew, but I made soup by forgetting to add thickener--my intended thickener was keto flour because, due to an autoimmune disease, I cannot have wheat or corn or potatoes.
I was ...
12
votes
3
answers
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When coating raw meat with flour, does leaving it for a period of time make the flour 'disappear'?
I recently trying the flour coating trick before frying it so my meat can withstand more temperature and does not get dried up so easily inside.
However, when I rolled the meat with all-purpose flour ...
12
votes
2
answers
5k
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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 ...
12
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3
answers
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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, ...
12
votes
3
answers
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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 ...
12
votes
1
answer
15k
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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 ...
11
votes
4
answers
5k
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What is the best practice storage method for flour to avoid bugs?
I have recently decided that I'd rather have base ingredients that I am store in my pantry in order to make more meals from scratch as opposed to getting things premade. A friend of mine told me there'...
11
votes
6
answers
6k
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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 ...
11
votes
3
answers
12k
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What is the advantage of a roux over a raw flour slurry, in sauce?
My standard Bechamel sauce recipe used to be:
Stir together flour and oil into a paste
Fry for a short while
Add a small amount of milk
Heat and stir until incorporated
Repeat steps 3-4 with ...
11
votes
3
answers
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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".
11
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3
answers
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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 ...
10
votes
4
answers
3k
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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 fortified)...
10
votes
2
answers
12k
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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?
9
votes
5
answers
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I need to judge whether my bread flour is ok or not. 50LB bag 11 months old
The bag was packed tight. It was in standard flour sack and inside a thick cardboard shipping box, there were a few hundred pounds on top of it, on a skid. It was not wrapped in plastic. Mostly the ...
9
votes
4
answers
2k
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What would result from not adding fat to pastry dough?
I'm preparing some form of pastry. The usual ingredients: flour, water, and shortening. What would happen if I don't add shortening?
9
votes
2
answers
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Flour contaminated by raw pork juices
The pack of pork I bought was leaky, and some of the juices soaked into a pack of flour. I'm wondering whether the flour is still safe to cook with.
What I'm thinking:
The flour will be baked before ...
9
votes
5
answers
58k
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What side effects should I expect by replacing cake flour with chickpea flour in all cookie recipes?
Last time I replaced maida with chickpea flour (keeping all other ingredients and their quantities same) in carrot cupcakes.
The only difference I noted was in rising. The cupcakes didn't rise much.
...
9
votes
3
answers
24k
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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.
9
votes
3
answers
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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.
...
9
votes
2
answers
5k
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Why would a baking recipe call for both cake and bread flour?
I recently encountered a recipe for chocolate chip cookies that mixes both cake and bread flour. Why would a baker want to do this? Cake flour, after all, is typically used for its low gluten content, ...
9
votes
7
answers
13k
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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 ...
9
votes
2
answers
871
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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 ...
9
votes
2
answers
16k
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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 ...
9
votes
1
answer
16k
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What are the differences between using whole wheat flour vs. all purpose flour in batter for frying?
There have been many questions related to whole wheat flower on this site before, but nearly all of them focus on baking. I'd like to know what is the effect of frying with whole wheat flour in terms ...
9
votes
3
answers
8k
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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?
...
8
votes
3
answers
6k
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How do I substitute almond flour for all purpose flour?
I am trying to make a few cookie recipes and want to reduce their carb content and make it suitable for a low carb consuming person. Most of the cookie recipes call for all purpose flour.
In one of ...
8
votes
10
answers
52k
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Cutting cold butter into flour - which mixer attachment should I use?
I have a kitchenaid 6 quart stand mixer and a large family of nine. At the moment we're using coupons to buy biscuit dough, but I wanted to look at the time and effort to make our own. Not just for ...
8
votes
3
answers
4k
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Can I make bread/pizza dough with only cricket flour and no wheat flour
I want to make bread and pizza dough, but all recipes I find online include other types of flours than the one I am interested in. Is it possible to make with only cricket flour? Acceptable ...
8
votes
6
answers
6k
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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 incorporated,...
8
votes
1
answer
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I am cooking beef stew in the crockpot and accidentally put a little flour in the beginning not end
I am cooking a beef stew in the crockpot and instead of adding a little flour at the end I accidentally added it at the beginning. What do I do to fix this? Will it mess the stew up? There was extra ...