What is gluten free flour?

Gluten Free Flours Welcome to the exiting world of gluten free flour!

If you have recently been diagnosed with celiac disease, or gluten intolerance, then you might have only used wheat flour in the past.

However there are many other grains that can be ground or milled into flour. There are also some surprising ingredients that you may not have ever considered using in your baked goods.

In the photo, two of the tubs contain grain based flours (rice and buckwheat) and the other two started life as beans!

As you learn more about gluten free baking you will also find yourself using flours made from nuts and seeds.

Commercial gluten free flour mixes

Because these ingredients are missing a certain protein, called gluten, they are used in a different way to wheat flour. Often you will find that you need to mix a number together to get the best results. Learning which ones to mix can take time, and can differ depending on what you want to bake, so you might like to start with a commercial mix.

Some manufacturers to look out for in the USA include Authentic Foods and Bob's Red Mill. In the UK, most supermarkets now stock Doves Farm. There are normally some basic recipes printed on the packs, and to a certain extent you can use your own favorite recipes by substituting the flour in the recipe for the same amount of gluten free mix.

Mixing gluten free flour yourself

Eventually, you will probably find yourself wanting to use a different mix for breads than you use for cakes, cookies or pie crusts. This is when it becomes easier to stock the individual flours and mix them yourself.

This is where my handy flour substitutes table comes in useful.

When you are mixing your own flours you may find it difficult to measure small amounts in cups. So my advice is to get yourself a pair of digital kitchen scales.

Gluten free flour can be sorted into categories, where each has a certain part to play in giving you the best results. If you find that you don't have a particular one to hand when a recipe calls for it, you can safely use a different one from the same category, as below (we will talk about each of these further down the page).

Group A - Cornflour, potato starch, tapioca or arrowroot. These provide smoothness to your mix.
Group B - Brown rice, cornmeal, quinoa, gram, teff, millet, amaranth or millet. These all provide protein to your mix.
Group C - potato starch and quinoa. Add moisture to baked goods.

In addition to the flours in the mix, some form of extender is required to replace the gluten. This is needed to help hold the baked goods together and give it some stretch. You can choose from:

Xanthum gum
or guar gum.

Types of gluten free flour

Nut flours, such as almond and cashew, are high in protein and a small amount can be included in gluten free flour mixes. They can also be used in place of dried milk powder in some recipes, if you are also on a dairy-free diet. Almond flour has been used since medieval times as a thickener.
more about almond flour

Amaranth flour is the ground seed of the Amaranth plant. It has a mild and nutty flavor and it is normally used in combination with other gluten free flours when baking. It can also be used for thickening.
more about amaranth

Arrowroot is an all purpose gluten free flour that can be used in baking (up to 25 percent of the mix) and is excellent for thickening. It has very little flavor and is easily digested.
more about arrowroot

Buckwheat, despite its name, is gluten free. The plant is related to rhubarb. The ground seeds produce a grey/brown flour which is nutritious, being a source of easily digested protein. It is high in fibre and is also said to reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure.

Buckwheat flour is used in pancakes or bread, normally mixed with other flours as it has a strong flavour. It does not work well as a thickener. In some people it can cause an allergic reaction.
more about buckwheat

Cornflour (or cornstarch in the US) is a light, white powder often used in gluten free mixes. It can be used by itself as an excellent thickener for sauces.

Cornmeal on the other hand is a yellow flour, also know as Masa Harina, and is often used for making tortillas. Although allowed on a gluten free diet, some people may be allergic to corn, in which case tapioca starch or arrowroot can be used for the same purpose.
more about corn

Gram flour also known as besan, or garbanzo is made from chick peas. A golden yellow coloured flour it is best used in savoury dishes. It is widely used in Indian cooking for things like pakoras and bajjis, however it can be used to make a wonderful, slightly nutty pastry. It makes an excellent thickener.

DO NOT confuse gram flour with Graham flour which is a type of wheat and NOT gluten free.

Potato starch flour is also used in the bought mixes. It is very rarely used by itself, as it has a distinctly potato flavor, but it helps to produce the lightness and softness in a mix. It doesn't work very well as a thickener. Potato Starch keeps well and can be bought in quantity.

Quinoa, pronounced keen-wah, is a cereal grain from Peru which used to be the staple diet of the Incas. Quinoa flour is high in fat and is used in a gluten free flour mix to add moisture to baked goods. It has a pleasant, nutty taste. This non-allergenic grain provides a good source of vegetable protein. The flour is somewhat hard to find in the UK, however, I have had success in grinding the seeds in a coffee mill to produce flour. It can be used in baking mixes but you may need extra liquid in your recipe as baked goods can turn out dry.
more about quinoa

Soy or soya flour is made from ground, roasted soy beans. It is high in protein and fat and has a nutty flavour. Full fat soy flour has a short shelf life and is best kept refrigerated or in the freezer. Defatted soy flour can be kept in the larder or pantry. Baked goods using soy flour may brown more quickly so it is best to lower the oven temperature slightly. It is another ingredient that people can become allergic to so best used in moderation.

Tapioca starch is a flour commonly found in the commercial gluten free flour mixes. Made from the root of the Cassava plant, tapioca flour serves to lighten baked items and helps impart a good texture and a "chewiness". It has no pronounced flavour and is usually non-allergenic. It makes a good thickener when dissolved in cold water first.

Teff grains, grown in Ethiopia, are tiny and therefore the whole seed is ground into flour, including the germ and husk. It contains the highest calcium, zinc, potassium and iron content of any cereal. Teff flour is high in dietary fibre and an excellent source of essential amino acids. A versatile flour that can be used to make breads, pasta, pancakes and muffins, but best not used in yeasted recipes.
more about teff

Remember, these gluten free flours may not produce exactly the same flavour and texture that you have been used to with wheat flour, but that doesn't mean you will not enjoy them!