Whole wheat flour vs plain flour: 5 differences every baker must know

Our plain white flour with a multi-purpose use is milled from a blend of the highest quality soft wheats to a fine consistency and rich in flavour. This flour can be used for making pastry, cakes, shortbreads, sauces and many more delicious sweet and savoury products.

Our whole wheat flour such as the Cotswold Organic Wholemeal Flour and Matthews Italian Tipo 00 Pizza Pasta Flour is high in protein and is also perfect for baking wholemeal baking bread, cookies, and everything in between!

Whilst there are many similar benefits between the two types of flour, there are a few differences between the two. Here are five differences between whole wheat flour and plain flour every baker must know!

Fibre content

One key difference between whole wheat flour and plain white flour is the fibre content. Whole wheat flour naturally contains the level of fibre found in wheat. Plain white flour on the other hand, has been stripped away of all of the fibre in wheat during the white flour production process.

Fibre is an integral part of your diet because it prevents constipation, helps control blood sugar, reduce the chances of getting heart diseases, and helps manage weight loss.

Nutritional content

Whole wheat flour is also rich in vitamins B-1, B-3, and B-5, riboflavin and folate. Whole wheat flour also contains more iron, calcium, protein, and other nutritional elements than white flour. If you want to consume a well-balanced nutritious diet, you can eat more food that uses whole wheat flour.

Colour

Whole wheat flour is slightly darker in colour compared to plain white flour because whole wheat flour contains the bran, endosperm, and germ that whole wheat naturally contains.

Shelf life

White flour is often bleached with a whitening agent, often a type of chemical, to make the flour appear clean and pure. The removal of the germ also increases the flour’s self life which is why it is more commonly found.

Whole wheat flour on the other hand contains bran and germ that are found naturally in wheat which decrease whole wheat flour’s shelf life.

Texture

In a blind test to compare the difference in texture of bars made with whole wheat flour and plain white flour, participants in the test described the bar made out of whole wheat flour as”crumbly,” “less smooth,” “fluffier,” and “sweeter.” More, the participants described the bar made out of white flour as “sticky” and “doughy.”

Both plain white flour and whole wheat flour are fantastic for baking pastry, cakes, shortbreads and everything else in between. If you’re looking for baking ideas for your next baking adventure, check out our online baking recipes! If you want to buy flour online and have flour delivered right to your doorstep, please check out our online flour store!

Check out our Wheat Flour collection.

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