I've been turned on to vital wheat gluten. A tablespoon of this stuff in two cups of flour converts that flour into a high-gluten flour. High gluten flour is practically double the price of all-purpose flour, and vital wheat gluten makes the latter into the former. The stuff is pretty cheap. Maybe ten bucks a pound. The high gluten flour makes for loaves with vastly improved crumb, and more sliceable without fragmentation. So when I make my bread batter these days, I stir in the vital wheat gluten, and then add flour to finish the dough.
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First - that isn't cheap - at least to my mind. If the additive is needed - I would look at the process. I should note - it won't hurt - but it is a sign of something else. Enjoy!
Takes a tablespoon of vital wheat gluten for two cups of flour. Know how many tablespoons of vital wheat gluten are in a pound? About sixty. Yes, compared with high gluten flour it's REAL cheap. Your mind might need some recalibration. I use two tablespoons of the stuff for my weekly baking of two large (2+ lb) sandwich loaves. Maybe 4 lbs of flour. That makes Probably two dollars extra for flour if I were to use high gluten flour. So we're talking sixteen cents worth of vital wheat gluten to convert two dollars worth of AP flour into high gluten flour that would be twice the price.
If properly prepared - nothing is needed. Anything more is fluff. Enjoy!