
What is the healthiest flour for bread?
- Quinoa
- Almond
- Teff (this is an ancient grain healthier than wheat)
- Coconut
- Buckwheat (especially good when baking gluten-free bread)
Is bread flour healthier than all purpose?
So yes, bread flour has a higher amount of protein, besides gluten. Still, if you want the best results, all-purpose flour may not deliver them, when looking to bake bread or cakes, according to your preferences. Even the small amount of protein will give this flour a certain degree of firmness.
Why do you need to use flour in bread?
Can You Use Regular Flour In Bread Machine?
- Regular flour or all-purpose flour can be used for making bread. ...
- Pay attention to the amount of gluten contained by the flour. ...
- Don’t hesitate trying regular flour in your bread machine. ...
- Regular flour can provide a tasty and spongy loaf of bread. ...
What is bread flour, and what is it used for?
Bread flour is a high-strength, high-gluten flour that's designed for making pizza doughs, crusty breads, pretzels, bagels and other chewy baked goods. Yeast breads made from bread flour tend to rise more since the higher protein produces additional structure. Fast Facts Made from hard red spring wheat Gluten content 12 to 16 percent

Can I substitute bread flour for regular flour?
At 12- to 13-percent protein content, bread flour is stronger than all-purpose flour, but it can generally be substituted for all-purpose, and vice versa. However, it's important to remember that bread flour's increased protein could result in a dough or batter that's dry, so you may need to add water.
How do I convert flour to bread flour?
Measure out 1 cup all-purpose flour (4 1/2 ounces or 129 grams). Remove 1 1/2 teaspoons (1/8 ounce or 4 grams). Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of vital wheat gluten (1/8 ounce or 5 grams). Whisk or sift to combine.
What can I use if I don't have bread flour?
All-Purpose Flour Is a Great Substitute in a Pinch If you're working on a recipe that calls for bread flour and you don't have any on hand, save yourself a trip to the store and a few bucks, by using an equal amount of all-purpose flour as a substitute.
What difference does bread flour make?
The main difference between bread flour and all-purpose flour is a matter of protein. Bread flour, which comes in white and whole wheat varieties, has a higher protein content than all-purpose, usually 11-13%. It's called “bread flour” because most bread requires higher amounts of protein to produce lots of gluten.
How much gluten do you add to flour to make bread?
The recommended ratio is one tablespoon of vital wheat gluten per two cups of flour. This is especially helpful for bread recipes using low-protein flour varieties, such as whole wheat or rye bread.
Can you use all-purpose flour to make bread?
The answer is yes! If you're wondering if you can use all purpose flour in place of bread flour or vice versa, you can! While the results may not be exactly the same, it will not ruin your baked goods entirely, and you'll still end up with a great result.
How do you make bread flour with cornstarch and all-purpose flour?
Can You Add Cornstarch To All-Purpose Flour To Make Bread Flour? If you need one cup cake flour, put one cup of corn starch in a measuring cup for every 2 tablespoons. All-purpose flour should be added to a cup. The mixture should then be processed again in a bowl 4 or 5 times.
How do you make bread flour with whole wheat flour?
To make your own bread flour, start by measuring out all-purpose flour according to your recipe. Next, add 1 teaspoon of vital wheat gluten for every 1 cup of flour to give the bread a firmer texture. For example, if your recipe calls for 2½ cups of flour, you would use 2½ teaspoons of vital wheat gluten.
What Is Flour?
Flour is typically made by finely grinding a grain into a powder, which can then be used in recipes to create a variety of baked goods. It is used to make cakes, cookies, muffins, tortillas, and bread amongst many other things. While flour is a common ingredient, not all flours are alike.
What Is Bread Flour?
When originally created, bread flour was designed to be paired with yeast in order to produce the perfect baked good (usually breads). The amount of protein found in bread flour is higher, in order to contain and produce more gluten and achieve the desired rise in bread.
What Is All Purpose Flour?
All purpose flour was designed with one thing in mind: to be all purpose. It works for just about every flour-demanding recipe, including bread, cookies, and cakes. While bread flour holds a higher protein content than that of all purpose flour, all purpose flour does contain quite a bit of protein.
Is Bread Flour More Expensive than All Purpose Flour?
Bread flour is typically more expensive than all purpose flour. Bread flour typically tends to have better baking qualities that make it favorable for those that love baking fresh bread at home. If you love your bread to be airy and chewy, bread flour is worth the extra splurge for better bread results.
Can You Substitute Bread Flour and All Purpose Flour?
The answer is yes! If you’re wondering if you can use all purpose flour in place of bread flour or vice versa, you can! While the results may not be exactly the same, it will not ruin your baked goods entirely, and you’ll still end up with a great result.
Popular Tags
Gluten Free Recipes Vegan Health Quinoa GMO Vegetarian Whole Grains What is it? Wednesday Podcast
All-Purpose Flour
All-purpose flour is, well, used for all purposes. While bread flour and cake flour are at opposite ends of the protein spectrum (more on that later), this powerhouse pantry staple is as middle-of-the-road as it gets.
Bread Flour
Bread flour has more protein than AP flour, somewhere between 11 and 14 percent, because it is made from a harder wheat berry. It’s ideal for chewy or dense baked goods like bagels, but it’s not great for light and fluffy things like pancakes.
Can You Substitute One For the Other?
You can use bread flour and AP flour interchangeably using a 1:1 ratio (if your recipe calls for one cup of AP flour, use one cup of bread flour) in almost any situation, though you should be aware that your final product’s texture will be affected. Only substitute one for the other if you’re in a pinch.
Wait, What About Cake Flour?
Cake flour, which is made from a softer wheat berry, has a protein content that hovers around 8 or 9 percent. If you’ve paid attention to this article thus far, you know that means it produces light results.
What Is Bread Flour?
The main difference between bread flour and all-purpose flour is their protein content. Soft wheat flours, like all-purpose flour, are usually about 8 to 12 percent protein, while hard wheat flours, like bread flour, contain around 12 to 15 percent protein.
Does Bread Flour Rise More Than All-Purpose Flour?
Breads made with all-purpose flour will rise just fine—but those made with bread flour will have more structure, so they'll hold their shape better and rise particularly well.
Can I Substitute All-Purpose Flour for Bread Flour?
Although bread flour contains more protein than all-purpose, you can generally swap one for the other, if needed.
All-Purpose Flour
All-purpose four is just that—all-purpose! It’s got a medium protein content and is ideal for quick breads, cookies, muffins, pie crusts, and obviously so much more.
Bread Flour
As previously mentioned, bread flour contains more protein than all-purpose, so it leads to stronger gluten formation. This makes bread flour particularly great for baked goods that need some stretch and chew, like sourdough bread or pizza dough. If your recipe calls for bread flour and all you’ve got is all-purpose, don’t fret.
Cake Flour
On the other end of the spectrum, cake flour has one of the lowest percentages of protein (about 5 to 8%), making it the best choice for tender baked goods. Obviously this is a great choice for cakes, but it also works well for muffins, scones, and biscuits.
Self-Rising Flour
Self-rising flour is mixed with baking powder and salt, making it ideal for baked goods with a light texture, like biscuits and pancakes. If you don’t have any on hand, you can easily make your own by mixing 1 cup all-purpose flour with 1½ teaspoons baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt for every cup called for in your recipe.
What is flour?
You can find an assortment of flours in most grocery stores these days, including cake flour, self-rising flour, whole grain flours like rye and spelt, and even gluten-free flours made from coconut, almond, or buckwheat.
So, what is all-purpose flour?
Exactly what it sounds like: all-purpose! It’s the baking pantry workhorse, a versatile white flour that can be used in almost any baking application. All-purpose flour is what I reach for when I’m making my favorite treats, like quick breads and cinnamon rolls.
Okay then, what is bread flour?
Bread flour has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour, ranging from 12% to 14%. This makes this type of flour ideal for all kinds of bread recipes, including hearty sourdoughs, tender brioche, and lacy English muffins.
Wait, what is protein content and why does it matter?
Each variety of wheat berry has a different protein content, which is determined by several factors: the variety’s color, the season it’s grown, and its hardness. Soft wheats have a lower protein content ( around 7 to 9%) and are usually used to make cake or pastry flour.
Can you substitute all-purpose flour for bread flour or vice versa?
According to Trang Tran, a former baker at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, you can successfully use all-purpose flour in place of bread flour, but you won’t get quite the same results. Depending on the type of bread you’re making, she says, all-purpose flour can sometimes even be preferable.
The takeaway
All-purpose flour is versatile and will work for almost anything you want to bake. When making bread dough, pay extra attention when kneading or stretching and folding to strengthen the dough adequately.
What are Other Differences Between Bread Flour and All-Purpose Flour?
Bread flour is stronger than all-purpose flour, so it gives more structure to your baked goods. It also has more gluten because of the higher protein content, and it is gluten that binds your food ingredients together. Lastly, you may notice that using bread flour requires more liquid in bread or dough recipes compared to using all-purpose flour.
Can You Substitute All-Purpose Flour for Bread Flour?
Yes, you can substitute all-purpose flour for bread flour. Since they weigh the same, you can use the same measurements listed in the recipe.
When Should You Use Bread Flour?
You should use bread flour when you want to achieve a good volume and chewy crumb to your baked product. This type of flour is your best choice for making pizza dough, bagels, pretzels, and artisan breads. And we should also mention that breads that use yeast come out better when you use bread flour.
When Should You Use All-Purpose Flour?
All-purpose flour is versatile. You can use it for so many food preparations in the kitchen. This type of flour makes great cookies, biscuits, pancakes, muffins, pizza crusts, and even bread. You can bake pastries and cakes with AP flour, and you can use it to give a good consistency to your soups and stews.
Can You Make Bread Flour from All-Purpose Flour?
Yes, you can make bread flour from all-purpose flour by adding vital wheat gluten to make up for the difference in protein content between these two flours.
Can You Use All-Purpose Flour Instead of Bread Flour in a Bread Machine?
Yes, you can use all-purpose flour in a bread machine to bake a great-smelling and great-tasting bread. You may not even notice any difference at all. In some recipes though, your bread may not rise as much if you use all-purpose flour instead of bread flour.
What Is Bread Flour?
Bread flour is – unsurprisingly – the flour that we use when we want to bake bread, and it produces a great texture. It is milled to have a high protein content, often somewhere around twelve percent (although this does depend on the brand that you buy).
Can You Make Bread Flour At Home?
You might be wondering if you can turn all-purpose flour into bread flour with some addition from your cupboards, but sadly, the answer is no. Bread flour needs to be milled with higher protein content, and you can’t create it from any of the other flours that you may have in your cupboard.
What Is Self-Rising Flour?
Self-rising flour is similar to all-purpose flour but has had certain things added to it. It is designed to be used in many different recipes, but particularly soft, light ones.
Can You Make Self-Rising Flour At Home?
Sort of, yes! If a recipe calls for self-rising flour and you don’t have any, you can make it yourself from all-purpose flour. You need to add one and a half teaspoons of baking powder and a quarter of a teaspoon of salt to every cup of all-purpose flour.
What Is The Difference Between Self-Rising Flour And Bread Flour?
The biggest difference between the two flours is the texture that they produce in their foods. Bread flour is chosen to create a chewy, strong texture that makes the bread satisfying to bite into and rip up. It is filling and strong enough to make sandwiches with.
Can You Substitute Bread Flour With Self-Rising Flour?
So, you’re making bread and you only have self-rising flour. Will it do instead? It will work, but unfortunately, it won’t work very well at all. If you use self-rising flour in a bread recipe, you will still get edible results most of the time, but it will not be a good loaf of bread.
Can You Substitute Self-Rising Flour With Bread Flour?
You will have more success with this substitution, although you’ll still notice a difference in texture. The heavier bread flour will make your cookies or cakes stodgy and may cause them to be chewy instead of tender.
