If you're looking for a new hobby or thinking of starting to bake, here's a useful introduction to flour: what it is, why it matters so much and how many types there are.
The essential ingredient in Thai desserts and bakery alike is, without doubt, flour, and it comes in many varieties. Let's get to know them.
Each type of flour has its own distinct properties, which is why most recipe books specify exactly which flour to use for which dessert. Using a flour with very different properties may give you a dessert or bake that doesn't turn out as intended. The main flours for desserts and bakery are as follows.
Rice Flour for Thai Desserts
Rice flour is used to make Thai desserts and comes in several types:
- Old rice flour: as the name suggests, it is made from aged rice, which is polished and milled into a fine powder. It absorbs water well and is suited to desserts such as khanom khrok (coconut rice pancakes), khanom tan (toddy palm cakes) and khanom rerai (rice-flour noodle nests with coconut).
- New rice flour: made from newly harvested rice. The obvious difference is that it has a more fragrant aroma than some old rice flours, but it is higher in moisture and absorbs less water. It suits desserts such as khanom piak pun (black coconut-ash pudding), khanom kruai (coconut custard cups), khanom paeng on (soft rice-flour dessert), khanom tom daeng and khanom tom khao (coconut-filled rice balls) and khanom alua (Thai meringue-like sugar candies).
- Fresh (wet-milled) rice flour: ground with water, so it contains more moisture than the flours above. It is not very popular today because it is inconvenient to store, and is mostly made by dessert shops that mill their own. Do not use it if it smells sour. It works for all Thai desserts, such as khanom tom daeng, khanom thuai (coconut cream cups), khanom tom khao and Thai lot chong (pandan rice-flour noodles in coconut milk).
Glutinous Rice Flour
- White glutinous rice flour: made by finely milling white glutinous (sticky) rice, and available in two main forms, fresh and dry. The fresh form is made the same way as fresh rice flour and is popular for bua loi (rice-ball dumplings in coconut milk), khanom khai hong (fried sweet sesame balls), khanom babin (coconut cakes) and khanom thua paep (folded mung bean dumplings). The dry form keeps for a long time, is easy to store and use, and works for all Thai desserts. Choose flour that has no musty smell or weevils.
- Black glutinous rice flour: made by finely milling black glutinous rice. White glutinous rice flour is usually mixed in so the flour isn't too dark; on its own, black glutinous rice flour is not soft and has a blotchy look, so adding white flour gives the dessert a better colour and a softer texture. Like the white type, it comes in fresh and dry forms, and is popular for khanom thua paep and khanom sot sai (coconut-filled parcels in banana leaf).
Wheat Flour
Wheat flour is used in both Thai desserts and bakery and should be chosen to suit the job. There are 3 types:
- Soft (light) wheat flour: popular for light, fluffy bakes such as bakery items, khanom pui fai (steamed fluffy cupcakes), khanom sali (steamed sponge cake) and khanom khai (small egg cakes).
- All-purpose wheat flour: popular for bakery and crisp, savoury snacks such as crispy khrong khraeng (shell-shaped crackers), thong muan (rolled coconut wafers) and khanom kliao (twisted crisp snacks).
- Hard (strong) wheat flour: not commonly used for Thai desserts because of its high protein content; it is mainly used for bread.
Cake Flour
Cake flour has the lowest protein content of all and is made from soft wheat. It is popular for cakes and bakery because it gives a soft, fluffy crumb with a lovely texture.
We hope you've found this guide to baking flours useful. If you're looking for more helpful baking tips, follow MK Unigroup, where you'll find plenty more articles.
