Flour is, perhaps, one of the top products in our kitchen. Wheat flour is used most often( at least in the western world, Europe, America, Australia and New Zealand), although it is also possible to get flour from corn, rice, nuts, legumes and some fruits and vegetables.
How to store flour
It is recommended to store flour for no more than 6 months, especially if you opened a bag or bag. Do not store it next to products that have a strong and sharp flavor( for example, garlic, onions, since flour absorbs foreign odor).
To avoid any "insects", a bay leaf is added to the vessel with flour;also it can be frozen( then the shelf life considerably increases).
Before use( regardless of the type of flour), it is desirable to sift 2-3 times to saturate the air.
Basic types of flour
Universal wheat flour
Made from a mixture of hard and soft wheat. It is bleached( use chemical bleach containing chlorine) and unbleached( the process of "whitening" goes naturally, with "aging" of flour).Contains 8-11% of gluten( protein).
Bleached flour is best for baking wafers, cakes and cookies, pancakes, and unleavened bread. When you use it you get a pretty good crust on the pies. Unbleached flour is used for baking strudels, puff pastry, yeast bread, eclairs( brewed cakes).
Almond flour
You can make yourself at home. Used in sweet pastries and if you want to add "moisture" and "juiciness" to products.
Barley flour
Has a light nutty taste, contains 4 times more fiber than wheat. Used for unleavened bread, pancakes.
Bread flour
Has a rather high content of gluten( 12-14%), mostly unbleached, sometimes add vitamin C( which improves the bread texture).
Buckwheat
It is popular in Eastern Europe, in the rest of the world it is almost unknown. Very useful, especially for diabetics.
Flour for baking cakes or biscuit flour
Contains a lot of starch, mostly bleached, so the texture of baking and biscuits from it turns out very airy.
Corn flour
Very useful, but has choleretic effect. Very popular in Africa and the Americas, because maize( corn) was imported from there. A great option for bread, casseroles, wafers and biscuits.
Coconut flour
It is often used as a thickener, instead of starch.
Oatmeal
It is quite easy to make yourself at home. It is very useful and easy to digest digestive tract.
Rye flour
Used mainly for baking bread, has a nutty taste, the products come out dark and "heavy".
Rice flour
It is quite popular in Asia. It is bright and dark, very useful for diabetics.
Manka( flour)
Often used for various types of pasta and Italian desserts. It has the highest level of gluten content and is high in calories.
Sorghum flour
Quite expensive, it is used for sweet baking.
Soybean flour
Of soy beans, it is very useful if produced not from genetically modified soy.
Wheat with bran
Predominantly goes to baking unleavened bread, or is used as an ingredient for "healthy food" products. The amount of bran can vary, depending on the manufacturer and the standards of the country of manufacture.
Flour with baking powder
Very popular in Europe and North America, Australia and New Zealand. Do not worry about adding the powder to the liver, everything is ready. It is mainly for sweet pastries and cakes.
Specialists say that from the right choice of flour depends almost half the success of your baking.