Pastry Chef Didar Yanar gave information about the subject. How much truth do we know about flour, which is the building block of pastry. First of all, flour is the name given to the fine powder obtained by grinding grains. It is the basic component of many foods, especially bread and pastries.
Usually the powder from wheat is simply called flour. Flour obtained from plants such as barley, oats, rye, corn, chickpeas is commonly referred to as corn flour, barley flour with the name of that grain.
In general, flour is formed by grinding wheat. So what is wheat?
Wheat is an annual herbaceous plant genus that has been improved all over the world from the family of wheatgrass. In the light of the researches carried out by different researchers, Anatolia, Western Iran and the Caucasus are accepted as the gene center of wheat.
Wheat consists of 3 main elements
1. Bran: It is the part on the outer surface rich in fibers and minerals.
2. Core: It contains high amount of oil and vitamin E.
3. Endosprem: It is the inner part containing a high percentage of carbohydrates, starches and proteins.
Flours are divided into two main groups according to their protein, that is, gluten content.
1. High protein flours are hard flours.
2. Low protein flours are soft flours.
The protein ratio in flour varies between 7% and 14%.
hard flour; It is used in making bread and bread products. It is the flour that is free of bran and seeds and consists of 100% endosperm. It contains 70% starch. Protein ratio is 13% and above.
Soft flour; It is used in the production of cakes, cookies and tart type pastry products. The protein ratio varies between 6% and 11%. It gives a soft and silky feel. It absorbs 25% to 50% of its own weight less water than hard flour.
Gluten: It is a protein found in wheat and other grains. Wheat flour contains more gluten than other grains such as rye, corn, rice and oats. It consists of two components: Glutenin and Gliadin.
Gluten: It provides the product to gain a strong and good structure. Accordingly, it helps to keep the gas emerging during fermentation in the product.
Gliadin: It gives elasticity to the dough. Thus, the product expands during fermentation and cooking.
Some people have a disease called celiac, which is caused by gluten.
They cannot consume products containing gluten. Buckwheat is a gluten-free type of wheat.
Cake flour: It is obtained by lowering the ph factor of the flour by applying the bleaching method to facilitate swelling. The protein ratio is between 7,8% and 8,5%. It is formed by finer grinding of soft flour.
Pastry flour: These are flours obtained without bleaching. Ideal for pie and tart dough. It is softer than general purpose flours and harder than cake flour. The protein ratio is between 8% and 8,5%.
Cookie flour: It is the flour containing 8,5 9% protein obtained without bleaching process. It is harder than pastry flour.
General purpose flours: It is preferred in hospitality sectors such as restaurants, hotels and cafeterias where there may be storage problems. It is obtained from a mixture of hard and soft flours. As the name suggests, it is used for all products made in pastry and bakery. The protein ratio can vary to achieve a better result for bread and cakes.
How is this done?
1. In order to obtain harder flour in bread making, 454 g of egg white is added for every 30 g of water. The amount of added egg white as well as the amount of water decreases.
2. To obtain soft flour; 454 g starch is added to each 30 g of water and the proportion of flour is subtracted as much as the added starch.
Be the first to comment