When creating the ideal texture for loaves of bread, many bakers turn to bread flour. But what exactly is bread flour, and how is it different from all-purpose flour? Bread flour is a high-protein flour that is specifically designed for baking bread. With its strong gluten content, bread flour gives bread a chewier texture and helps it rise higher. Read on to learn the characteristics of bread flour, what it's used for, and how it differs from all-purpose flour.
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What Is Bread Flour Used For?
Bread flour is a high-protein flour that typically contains between 12% - 14% protein and is designed for baking yeasted bread. The high protein content means that bread flour has more gluten in it, which makes the dough more elastic and light. It requires significant kneading to create a good gluten structure, which gives bread its chewy, airy texture when baked.
As the name suggests, bread flour is used for making various bread types, like sourdough and white bread. It is also ideal for other recipes where you desire more structure and a chewier consistency, such as pizza dough, flatbreads, pretzels, and bagels.
What Is Strong Flour?
Strong flour, or strong bread flour, is just another name for bread flour that is commonly used in the United Kingdom. There is no difference between bread flour and strong bread flour, strong flour, or hard flour.
Bread flour is sometimes called strong flour because the flour is made from hard wheat varieties, unlike other types of flour.
Bread Flour vs All-Purpose Flour
The main difference between bread flour and all-purpose flour is the type of wheat used and their respective protein contents. Bread flour is made from hard wheat and usually contains 12% - 14% protein. All-purpose flour is made from soft and hard wheat and has an average of 8% - 11% protein. The presence of more protein translates to a higher formation of gluten, which plays a crucial role in the overall texture of bread products. Its ability to create a strong, elastic network of gluten strands gives bread the desired chewy texture and airy rise.
While bread flour is designed for bread-making, all-purpose flour is a more versatile option that can be used in a wide range of recipes. All-purpose flour is best for cakes, cookies, muffins, pastries, and quick breads.
If you're aiming for a crusty, chewy bread with a slightly denser crumb, bread flour is the way to go. Its higher protein content and gluten development contribute to a crustier exterior and a chewier texture. On the other hand, all-purpose flour, with its lower protein content, tends to produce a lighter, softer texture and a thinner crust.
Substitutes for Bread Flour
While bread flour is a staple ingredient in many bread recipes, there are times when you may find yourself without this specific type of flour in your pantry. Luckily, there are a few other types of flour that can be used as a substitute for bread flour in a pinch.
- All-Purpose Flour: As its name suggests, all-purpose flour is a versatile option that can be used in a variety of recipes, including bread. It has a moderate protein content, usually around 8% - 11%, which is lower than bread flour but will still provide volume. Generally, you can swap in unbleached all-purpose flour for bread flour in a 1:1 ratio. You can also add vital wheat gluten to the all-purpose flour, which provides the additional protein needed to create the ideal texture for your bread dough.
- Whole Wheat Flour: Made from grinding whole wheat kernels, whole wheat flour adds a nutty flavor and a hearty texture to your bread. It has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour, typically around 14%, which helps create a good structure in the bread. However, due to its higher fiber content, you may need to adjust the amount of liquid in your recipe to achieve the desired consistency.
- Rye Flour: If you're looking to create traditional rye bread, then rye flour is the best flour type to use in your recipe. It has a low protein content and less gluten than all-purpose flour, creating a unique density in bread baked from it. Rye flour can also be used to create deeply flavorful pumpernickel bread, bring depth to pizza crusts, and feed your sourdough starter.
There are some flour types, like cake or pastry flour, that should not be used as a substitute for bread flour. These flours are relatively low in protein since they are designed to produce tender, fluffy cakes and pastries, so they would not be able to develop the gluten structure needed for the right bread texture and rise.
Whether you're looking to bake fresh white bread or you want to start making sourdough, high-protein bread flour is a great addition to your arsenal of bread-making supplies. Its higher protein content provides the necessary strength and structure for bread dough, resulting in a lighter and chewier texture. Additionally, the increased gluten development in bread flour enhances the rise and volume of baked goods.
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FAQs
The flour labeled as bread flour is wheat flour with a higher protein content than all purpose flour, usually around 11.5%. It's used to bake bread because the high protein content means it contains more gluten, which make the bread stretchier and chewier.
What is a good substitute for bread flour? ›
You can use all-purpose flour as a 1:1 substitute for bread flour and vice-versa. For example, for 1 cup of bread flour, you can use 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Bread and pizza crust made with all-purpose flour may have a little less chew than those made with bread flour, but the results will still be good.
What happens if I use all-purpose flour instead of bread flour? ›
If you make a bread dough with all-purpose flour, the gluten network won't be as strong because of the lower protein content; this means the dough won't be able to stretch as much to accommodate those bubbles, resulting in smaller bubbles and bread with a tighter crumb.
How to make bread flour out of regular flour? ›
Here's How Much to Add
Lots of baking sites disagree about how to turn all-purpose flour into bread flour. Some people recommend adding just 1 teaspoon of vital wheat gluten per cup of all-purpose, while others recommend 1 to 3 tablespoons per recipe. I guess the variation depends on the baker's preferences and budget.
What is bread flour? ›
Bread flour is made from hard wheat and usually contains 12% - 14% protein. All-purpose flour is made from soft and hard wheat and has an average of 8% - 11% protein. The presence of more protein translates to a higher formation of gluten, which plays a crucial role in the overall texture of bread products.
What to use if you run out of bread flour? ›
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.
Can I use self-rising flour instead of bread flour? ›
Once again, self-rising flour is not the same thing as all-purpose flour nor is it the same thing as cake flour, bread flour, or pastry flour. Self-rising flour is almost exactly like all-purpose flour, but it has added salt and leavening mixed into it.
What is the best flour for baking bread? ›
While bread flour is the best option, it can sometimes be used if you don't have bread flour. “Check the protein content,” advises Chef Jürgen, since it can vary from brand to brand, and an all-purpose flour that contains protein on the higher end of the range, 12 to 13 percent, will produce a better outcome.
Can I use regular flour instead of bread flour in my bread machine? ›
Yes! All-purpose flour has a 9% to 12% gluten content, while bread flour's gluten content falls in the 10% to 13% range. Even if your all-purpose flour lacks gluten, you can still use it in the bread machine. Again, the worst that will happen is that your bread will not rise as much as it would with bread flour.
What happens if you use plain flour to make bread? ›
But if you only have plain flour or need to supplement strong flour with plain, go ahead. The loaf will rise, with a soft crumb and golden crust, and the bread will taste better than a cheap, shop- bought loaf – but it won't have the springy chew of a loaf made entirely with strong flour.
Strong bread flour is made from “hard” wheat varieties and has more protein, from 12 to 14 percent. This creates more rise and structural support in the dough, allowing the final product to lift and hold shape. It also creates a chewier texture and more browning in the crust.
Is pizza flour the same as bread flour? ›
Pizza Flour and bread flour are both made from wheat. But the difference in their hydration levels makes them ideal for different purposes. Bread flour has a higher hydration level than pizza flour, which facilitates a better rise. This means it will produce a moist dough that leads to a soft and chewy crust.
Does flour go bad? ›
Expired flour can be safe to use if the flour is still good. However, flour does go bad, which you can determine from smell and appearance. If the quality has deteriorated and you use it, whatever you make will mirror those deficiencies.
What's another name for bread flour? ›
Strong flour is another name for high-gluten flour used in bread baking that is typically added to other flours to increase the overall gluten level. It's milled more coarsely and has a 13–14 percent protein content that requires a lot of kneading to form a strong and supple dough structure.
Can you use instead of bread flour? ›
All-purpose flour (otherwise known as plain flour) is an excellent substitute for bread flour. Using plain flour for bread or pizza dough does result in a softer, less chewy dough.
How do you replace flour in bread? ›
11 best flour substitutions
- Chickpea flour. Often confused with besan (see below), chickpea flour is made from ground white chickpeas. ...
- Almond flour. Almond flour is an excellent alternative to have in your kitchen cupboard. ...
- Gluten-free flour mixture. ...
- Coconut flour. ...
- Gram flour (besan) ...
- Rice flour. ...
- Buckwheat flour. ...
- Oat flour.
But if you only have plain flour or need to supplement strong flour with plain, go ahead. The loaf will rise, with a soft crumb and golden crust, and the bread will taste better than a cheap, shop- bought loaf – but it won't have the springy chew of a loaf made entirely with strong flour.
Does the type of flour matter when making bread? ›
The protein content of the flour that you choose, then, as well as the kneading process you apply to the dough, determines the gluten development and ultimately governs the outcome of your loaf. So in short, it matters greatly what flour you choose for bread baking.
