Bleached Flour
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Anonymous
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Any store in the area sell it? I don’t want to buy online.
Is it really that bad to use bleached flour? I’m reading all about it online and many countries ban it. |
Anonymous
| If you’re looking for bleached flour it’s everywhere. You can find King Arthur unbleached flour on n most stores too. I use unbleached flour to feed starter and make sourdough bread. It performs better. |
Anonymous
| Why do you want bleached flour? |
Anonymous
| Gold Medal flour and other brands can be found in most stores. “Bad”? Since you’ve read about the concerns and you’re aware that many countries ban it, how “bad” it is for you is an assessment that you’ll have to make for yourself, with your health team. If you’re making a recipe that specifically requires bleached flour, it’s possible that the flour might not be at the top of the list of concerns. |
Anonymous
Where is bleached flour banned? |
Anonymous
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If you’re using it for cake, try unbleached flour and sub potato starch 10% by weight. It is light but doesn’t have that icky aftertaste.
I forget where this comes from originally, I think the Cake Bible? Maybe. Anyway it’s a good trick. |
Anonymous
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Most flour in the U.S. is bleached. Some are also bromated, but it isn’t as widespread.
It is harder to find flour that is unbeached AND unbromated. King Arthur is the best brand of flour. But if you are actually wanted bleached flour, pick up any generic bag of flour and it will likely be bleached. But when in doubt, just read the back and it will say |
Anonymous
Bromated flour is banned in EU but I don’t think bleached is |
Anonymous
| Most grocery store flour is bleached. |
Anonymous
| Bleached flour is the default in the US. |
Anonymous
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Unbleached flour is the default. King Arthur, Pillsbury and Gold medal are all unbleached.
Where y’all finding bleached? |
Anonymous
I’m trying to make bao buns and it makes the buns more white. |
Anonymous
Gold medal has a bleached version. You used to be able to buy it from Safeway. The blue one. I used to buy Swan’s Down from my bodega for making white cake, but the ynbleached/potato starch mix is much better. |
Anonymous
Bleaching is accomplished a few different ways. The most common is a gas bath. Chlorine dioxide gas is pumped over the flour causing a reaction that mimics the aging process. Chlorine dioxide is the same stuff used to sanitize municipal water and bleach wood pulp for paper. Other common additives include peroxides, including benzoyl peroxide (think acne treatment). Unfortunately, like so many unsavory facts of large-scale commercial food industry, it can be extremely difficult to find detailed reports on what other chemicals, and in what proportions are used. It is easy, however, to find out what chemical processes and additives are banned in other parts of the world. Chemically bleaching flour currently is banned in Australia, the European Union, and many other countries across the globe due to the carcinogenic properties of the chemicals used. These facts aside, the bleaching process can also impart a bitter aftertaste and off odors. Both of those would be enough to make an artisan baker squirm. |