While most types of flour are made from common wheat, various types of wheat can be turned into fantastic flour. For instance, semolina is a variant of wheat that is often turned into semolina flour.
If you have never heard of semolina flour before, you may be curious as to what semolina flour is. I did some digging, and here is what I learned!
Contents show
What Is Semolina Flour?
Semolina flour is a coarse flour made from durum wheat, which is not to be confused with wheat used to create regular flour. Generally, semolina flour is used for recipes that require high gluten since semolina flour has 13% or more gluten. For instance, semolina flour is often used for bread and pasta recipes.
Do you want to find out what the English name of semolina flour is, how semolina flour is different from regular flour and more? Keep reading!
What Is Semolina Flour Made Of?
Semolina flour is created from durum wheat, which is ground a bit coarsely compared to most kinds of flour. Durum is a type of wheat that is not the same as common wheat used to make regular flour.
What Is The English Name Of Semolina Flour?
Generally, semolina flour can be considered the English name. However, most people in the United States will call semolina flour “farina,” which is not the same as Italian farina because Italian farina is made from common wheat.
What Is Semolina Flour Used For?
Normally, semolina flour is used for recipes that require a lot of gluten since semolina flour usually has 13% gluten. Therefore, semolina flour can offer a lot of structure, rise, and chewiness to many recipes.
For instance, semolina flour is often used to make pasta recipes. Semolina flour will make the pasta chewy and offer a slightly coarse texture, which will allow sauces to stick to the pasta well.
However, semolina flour can also be used to make baked goods like bread since the gluten in semolina will make the bread rise.
What Is The Difference Between Semolina Flour And Regular Flour?
Firstly, the main difference between semolina flour and regular flour is the wheat they are made from. Semolina flour is created from durum wheat while regular flour is made from common wheat.
Since they are made from different kinds of wheat, they will differ when used. For example, semolina flour generally has a coarse texture while regular flour is very fine.
Moreover, they have different gluten levels, which will greatly impact your dishes. Regular flour normally has 8-11% gluten whereas semolina flour can have 13% gluten or higher.
Therefore, the texture, structure, and size of your dishes will be different. Regular flour will create light and softer dishes while semolina flour makes denser, chewier, and heavier dishes.
Is Semolina Flour Better Than Wheat Flour?
Deciding if semolina flour is better than wheat flour will mostly depend on the recipe. Since every recipe will have different needs, a different type of flour will suit each recipe.
However, regular wheat flour or all-purpose flour can be considered the “better” flour. All-purpose flour can be used in most recipes, making all-purpose flour more versatile than semolina flour.
Although, most wheat flour like all-purpose flour has low gluten levels, which will not offer much structure compared to semolina flour. Some exceptions to that will be bread flour, which has a gluten level of 13% or more.
Is Bread Flour The Same As Semolina Flour?
Technically, bread flour and semolina flour are not the same. This is because semolina flour is made from durum wheat while bread flour is made from hard common wheat.
However, many people use semolina flour and bread flour interchangeably in many recipes. Bread flour has a similar gluten content to semolina flour, making them easy to switch out between each other.
Are Polenta And Semolina The Same?
Polenta and semolina are not the same because they are made from different ingredients. Polenta is made from corn whereas semolina is made from durum wheat.
Since they are made from different ingredients, they will have different uses and properties. For example, semolina is high in gluten thanks to the durum wheat whereas polenta does not have gluten since polenta is made from corn.
Due to the different gluten levels, they will be best used for different recipes. For instance, ground polenta can work in recipes that do not require rise whereas semolina flour will be better used for recipes that need structure and rise.
Is Semolina Flour Gluten-Free?
Semolina flour is not gluten-free because semolina flour is made from a variant of wheat. This means that the proteins inside semolina flour will mostly be made of gluten.
What Is A Substitute For Semolina Flour?
One of the best substitutes for semolina flour is bread flour. Bread flour is made from common wheat, but bread flour has a similar gluten content to semolina flour so you can easily use this substitute in most recipes.
Next, the second-best substitute for semolina flour is durum flour. Durum flour is made from the same kind of wheat as semolina, meaning you will get a very similar flavor and gluten level as semolina flour.
However, it is essential to note that semolina flour and durum flour have slightly different textures. Semolina flour is a bit coarse while durum flour has a much finer texture.
If you want to find out what sorghum flour is, what sweet rice flour is, and what soya flour is, read our other articles.
Conclusion
Semolina flour is a great type of wheat flour created from durum wheat. While semolina flour is made from wheat, semolina flour is not made from the same type of wheat as all-purpose flour.
Normally, semolina flour has a high gluten content, which can be 13% or higher. Therefore, semolina flour works best for high-gluten recipes, such as pasta and bread recipes.
