Nutritional Information — Nutritional Information
Gluten Free Flour Substitutes 0
Gluten Free Flour Substitutes
If you are new to gluten free then you're probably feeling overwhelmed by how to change all the ingredients to make your baking gluten free. There are many different types of gluten free flours that you can use, but none of them are a direct replacement because they have different properties to wheat flour. There are not many things you can bake with just one type of gluten free flour and therefore you need to mix a few different flours together in order to produce a great tasting and textured product.
For example: Some flours are heavier, some are much lighter, some have higher protein content and others higher fat content, which all affect the end product. Wheat flour is much more versatile and in generally more nutritious than many other flours.
Some examples of substitute flours include:
|
Flour |
Properties |
Protein /100g |
Fat/ 100g |
Nutrition |
Other useful info |
|
Coconut flour |
Heavy and absorbs a lot of liquid. Has a strong flavour. |
20g |
13g |
High in fibre and a good source of iron. |
Using eggs with coconut flour in recipes can help with the dryness of the product. |
|
Almond meal |
A heavy flour with a good flavour, but not suitable for people with nut allergy |
18g |
42g, 27g unsaturated |
High in magnesium, and vitamin E |
Can be used 1:1 in substitute for wheat flour, but it is expensive to do it this way.
|
|
Potato starch |
Becomes thick and almost gelatinous if you don't use enough fluid. |
0.1g |
0.2g |
|
A good option when mixed with other flours, but on its own |
|
Maize starch/ cornflour |
Very light like dust. Not suitable on its own |
0.4g |
0g |
|
Often used for thickening sauces or as a blend with other flours. |
|
Buckwheat flour |
Has a nutty flavour |
13g |
3g |
High in B vitamins |
Makes good pancakes, when mixed with rice flour, but the strong flavour makes it difficult to use a lot of |
|
Sorghum |
|
8g |
3g |
Good source of iron |
|
|
Rice flour |
Good weight and flavour, versatile |
6g |
1.4g |
Good source of vitamin B6 |
Makes great shortbread. |
|
Tapioca starch |
Very light weight |
0g |
0g |
High in Iron |
Not highly nutritious but contributes to a good baked texture when used in combination |
|
Soy flour |
Strong flavour, many don’t like it. Use in very small quantities. |
49g |
1g |
Good source of magnesium, iron, excellent source folate. Also good source of thiamine and B6 |
|
Which gluten free flours to blend?
Different blends of flours work better for different types of baking. Some of them are much more expensive than others depending on the origin of the flour. Rice flour, tapioca, buckwheat and maize starch are some of the most affordable gluten free flours.
If you don't feel confident mixing your own blends then there are plenty you can buy and many of them work exceptionally well.
Well and Good,- works really well for cakes and muffins.
Orgran - great for gluten free biscuits,
Bob's Red Mill - also does a range of different mixes including pancakes, muffins, cookies and more.
Mixing your own flours
Biscuits
We recommend using a combination of brown rice flour, potato starch, coconut or almond flour work best.
Rice flour doesn't absorb liquid and fat like wheat flour. If you just use rice flour on it’s own, it will likely cause cookies to spread too much.
GFJules shares her best secrets for blending flours
Use 2 and 1/2 cups of starchy flour, plus 1 and 1/2 cups of a wholegrain gluten free flour, and 3 tsp of xanthan or guar gum as a good mix for cookies and cake
Cakes and muffins
Try a combination of rice flour, tapioca starch, maize starch and something a little heavier like sorghum, buckwheat.
Sauces
Using rice flour or corn starch is a great option when you need to thicken sauces.
Other
Rice flour is also suitable when used as the main flour for making crackers, shortbread, noodles and dumplings, pizza bases.
Almond flour is often used as the main flour in gluten free cakes as it has a great flavour and holds a lot of the moisture in.
The best thing to do when learning, is to experiment using small batches. Make two batches at a time, one with a variation. Keep a little diary of what amounts you used and how they turned out and how long they last once cooked. Next time make small adjustments and monitor the outcomes til you find something you like.
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