Making recipes from scratch can be such an enjoyable way to spend time. You’re measuring ingredients, mixing or kneading, shaping, and eventually baking your pastries, bread, pizza. Whatever you like. Every step in the baking process has its value, and in the end, you get a warm and tasty treat for all your senses. But sometimes, baked goods can have a floury taste that spoils all.
Why does that happen? Why baked goods have a floury taste? The key to this problem is more simple than you think. The first reason is the most obvious one – you’re using too much flour, but there are a few more. Let’s take a look.
Using too much flour gives a floury taste
You could be using too much flour for your recipes and not even be aware of that.
How do you measure flour – by volume or by weight?
One of the reasons your baked goods have a floury taste could be scooping flour. Many recipes call for 3 cups of flour, for example. You can get three different amounts of flour from three other cups when you measure with cups.
It’s effortless to use an immense amount of flour than needed if you measure it that way. Scooping compacts the flour, and that way, you could end up using as twice as much as the recipe calls for.
Tip: Instead of cups, use a kitchen scale and measure your ingredients by weight – in grams. That way, you’ll get a more accurate amount.
Sifting is another thing. Most recipes don’t even mention that you should sift dry ingredients. That’s something that professional chefs are taking for granted, like a well-known fact. Maybe for them.
If you’re a beginner in baking from scratch, you should know that all dry ingredients – flour, cacao powder, corn starch – you should sift first. Sifting removes impurities and aerates dry ingredients. This way, you can measure dry ingredients more accurately.
Tip: First, sift flour and then measure it.
Not letting the dough rest
Letting the dough sit and rest in a cool place can make a difference in its texture and flavor.
In today’s modern world, we’re all in a hurry and have no patience nor time to wait for anything, but baking is the process that requires both. Next time you mix all the ingredients, leave them to chill for a few hours. It doesn’t matter is it bread or pizza dough, scone or cookie mixture.
Leaving the dough to sit will band together all ingredients, and your baked goods won’t have a floury taste.
The kind of flour you’re using counts
There are four main types of flour – bread, all-purpose, pastry, and cake flour. There are also many varieties in between. The texture of the flour you’re using could give that recognizable floury taste to your baked goods.
If you use high-protein flour, such as bread flour, for making a cake or scones, your recipe won’t turn out as you expect, and in addition – the cake will have a floury taste. The same goes for any other recipe you don’t use appropriate flour.
Don’t make such beginner’s mistakes if you’re making recipes from scratch. There are ways to make substitutes for all kinds of flour if you don’t have the right type at home. Don’t ignore the recipe’s instructions, or you’ll be facing not-so-great results. Shortly:
| Type of flour | Use for: |
|---|---|
| Bread flour | Bread, pizza dough, rolls |
| All-purpose flour | Biscuits, pie crusts, gravies |
| Pastry flour | Pastries, scones, pancakes, pies |
| Cake flour | Cakes, tender pastries |
Citations:
- https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/14615/how-to-get-rid-of-the-taste-of-flour-in-homemade-bakery
- https://missvickie.com/cookies-taste-like-flour/
- https://richardpantry.com/cookies-taste-like-flour/
