Forever ago, I found a chart that listed all of the readily available non-wheat flours and their properties, for the purpose of helping people bake gluten-free things more easily. I can’t find that chart, so I’m looking around for other options now, and here’s what I’ve found so far.
Between the Fork and Beans, Gluten Free Girl, and The Gluten Free Lifesaver sites, I see you can group flours into the following categories:
- Starchy/light: arrowroot, cornstarch, potato atarch, tapioca (starch or flour), sweet rice (mochiko)
- These generally are used to add texture and lightness to the finished product
- Whole grain/medium: yellow or green pea, fava bean, chickpea, millet, oat, quinoa, sorghum, white rice, roasted soybean (kinako)
- Legume flours tend to give a very good rise but have distinct bean flavours
- Sorghum: gives results similar to wheat in lightness; has a nutty flavour
- Millet: same protein content as wheat; powdery texture; sweet flavour
- Oat: very similar result as wheat flour; check for certified non-cross-contaminated flour
- Heavy: almond, amaranth, brown rice, buckwheat, coconut, cornflour, cornmeal, teff, potato flour
- Coconut flour absorbs liquid much more readily than other flours, so you shouldn’t use it in a ratio higher than 25%
- Potato flour: same as coconut flour
- Nut flours will contribute fat to a recipe (avoid in pastry)
Gluten Free Girl recommends a blend of 40% whole grain/heavy flours to 60% starches, while Fork and Beans recommends experimenting with these ratios:
- 1:1 starch to whole grain
- This pancake recipe from Gluten Free Baking uses a 1:1 ratio, approximately
- This pie pastry recipe from Serious Eats uses about a 1:1 ratio by weight, with about 0.25 part coconut flour added for stability
- This pastry flour mix from the Food Network uses a 1:1 ratio by weight almost exactly
- 2:1 starch to medium
- This all-purpose mix from Thank Heavens uses a 2:1 ratio with a small amount of heavy for body
- 1:2 starch to medium
- 1:1:1 starch to medium to heavy
From The Gluten Free Lifesaver, I’ve grabbed their gluten free ratios cheat sheet; note that it’s by volume and not weight:
When it comes to binders like xanthan or guar gum, they should be added in the ratios recommended by the manufacturer.