Flour. It's a food storage staple. But trying to figure out exactly what kind to store, and how, can be a bit of a challenge. So first we'll talk about the basic kinds of flour. I'm not going to cover rice flour or any of the other gluten-free options. I'm sorry, but I have zero experience with these, and I firmly believe that people should only write about what they have at least some knowledge of.
TYPES OF FLOUR
Bleached, enriched flour. The bleaching agents most commonly used to produce pure white flour are benzoyl peroxide, potassium bromate, and chlorine gas. Sam's Club and the restaurant supply stores around here only carry bleached, enriched flour. This flour is better suited to cookies, pancakes, pie crusts, waffles, quick breads, and muffins.
Unbleached, enriched flour. Unbleached flour does not have the bleaching chemicals (you probably guessed that on your own). It does have more protein than bleached flour. Most grocery stores carry both bleached and unbleached flour. Unbleached flour is better suited to yeast breads, cream puffs, eclairs, and pastries.
Enriched flour. Most flour sold in the US is enriched with vitamins (thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid) per government regulations, as well as other nutrients (iron) that are lost in the milling process of removing the wheat germ. Enriched flour does not have the same nutritional value as whole wheat
flour. Whole wheat flour has fiber and a lower glycemic index, meaning the
sugars are digested and enter the blood stream more slowly, which is especially
important for diabetics.
Bread flour has gluten added to it to produce a stronger rise and chewier crumb, and it is higher in protein. It does not work well in making cookies or pie crusts.
Gluten flour has gluten protein added to flour to help bread rise
better and improve texture. Generally, about one teaspoon is added per cup of all-purpose
flour. One tablespoon is added per cup of whole wheat flour.
Bleached and unbleached flours remove the wheat germ, so there is nothing to go rancid. However, flour does still go bad. Just in the bag from the store, it lasts about a year. Stored in a plastic container, it will go about two years. Flour in #10 cans, packaged and stored properly, has about a ten-year shelf life, much shorter than whole wheat.
Whole wheat flour is not bleached and not enriched because the wheat germ, the brown stuff, is retained, and that's where most of the vitamins and other nutrients are. Because the fatty acids are now exposed to air, they immediately begin oxidizing, and the flour goes rancid fairly quickly, usually within 6-9 months.
Regardless of what kind of flour you buy, you should freeze it for three days to kill insects and eggs before packaging for long-term storage. After three days, remove it from the freezer and allow 12-24 hours to come to room temperature. You really don't want to get condensation in your bag or bucket. That would be a complete waste. Ideally, you'd vacuum-seal in mylar bags, but that gets a little pricey for some, especially with a lot of flour to store. And it still only gives you a shelf life of five years. What we've done, what's worked for us for years, is to simply put it in buckets with oxygen absorbers. Well, that's what we used to do. We rotate through flour pretty quickly and usually only have 100 pounds on hand. Even then, though, I sometimes come across a bucket that was hiding someplace else and is up to two years old. My taste buds aren't too sensitive, and I've never noticed a problem. My family members do have more discriminating palates, and I've never heard them complain about the flour going bad. Freezer-burned butter, yes. Dry milk in the fridge, double yes. Old flour, no.
On the other hand, I have a friend who has gotten flour from the Home Storage Center (HSC) and I've read of people online getting their flour from the HSC, and that it sometimes takes on a metallic taste. Don't despair! We don't know why this happens, but if it happens to you, try pouring it back and forth in bowls and letting it air out. That should help. If it doesn't, I'll soon have an entire post devoted to what to do with flour that has gone bad.
Links to related posts:
Overview of Long-Term Food Storage
Food STORAGE
© 2019, PrepSchoolDaily.blogspot.com
9 may 2021
