# What is white flour?



## David Wong (Jul 24, 2005)

Hi, I am reading a chinese reciept for BBQ Pork steamed buns.
One of the ingredient for the bun is 4 cups white flours. Does anyone know what exactly is white flours ? I went to A&P and other supermarkets seems no one knows what it is. Anyone knows please do help. Thanks in advance.


David


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## tj (Jul 24, 2005)

White flour.....as opposed to whole wheat, rye, rice, or some other kind of flour.

You know it better as all-purpose flour.


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## David Wong (Jul 24, 2005)

Hi thanks for the quick reply..I don't think its all-purpose flours, I used it and tried making it (all purpose flours) with it..it does come out tasting or lookin anything like the ones I had at dim sum restaurant. The ones they served at dim sum are like "white", softer and fluffy. So, I think its not all-purpose flours. Thanks





			
				tj said:
			
		

> White flour.....as opposed to whole wheat, rye, rice, or some other kind of flour.
> 
> You know it better as all-purpose flour.


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## jkath (Jul 24, 2005)

Could it be cake flour you're looking for?


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## ironchef (Jul 25, 2005)

David, could you please list the possibilities that you've already found and/or tried that was NOT the white flour that you're looking for? This will help people narrow it down and eliminate any redundancy.

Did you try asking any of the local Chinese Restaurants what flour they use for their dim sum?


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## msalper (Jul 25, 2005)

*I found this documents that is not an exact answer for your question but maybe one of the steps to go your real answer. I haven't already known about gluten's mission ... *


*What is the difference in the white flours available in the grocery store?* 


Different kinds of flours are made from different kinds of wheat. Bread flour is milled from a hard wheat, resulting in a flour that has more gluten, the elastic substance that develops when flour gets wet and is manipulated by kneading, beating or stirring. Gluten helps to give bread its structure. Cake flour is milled from soft wheat. Its gluten content is less than hard wheat,  so it is used for cakes and pastries that need tenderness. All-purpose flour is good general use flour and is made from a blend of hard and soft wheat. 


http://dbs.extension.iastate.edu/answers/projects/answerline/questions/answer113.html


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## Brianschef (Jul 25, 2005)

Hope this helps some...
Dim sum restaurants have a wide variety of dishes, usually several dozen. Among the standard fare of dim sum include:


*Gow gee* (or *Jiaozi*) (餃子 gau zi, 饺子)
Jiaozi is a standard in most teahouses. They are made of ingredients wrapped in a translucent rice-flour or wheat-flour skin. Though common, steamed rice-flour skins are quite difficult to make. Thus, it is a good demonstration of the chef's artistry to make these translucent dumplings. The most common type is _haa gaau_, which is a shrimp dumpling with rice-flour skin. There are also dumplings with vegetarian ingredients, such as tofu and pickled cabbage.


*Bao* (包 bau, 包)
Baked or steamed, these fluffy bun are filled with different meats and vegetables. The most popular type is _cha siu baau_ (叉燒包, 叉焼包, chāshāobāo), a bun with barbeque-flavoured pork meat and onions inside. It can be either steamed to be fluffy and white or baked with a light sugar glaze to produce a smooth golden-brown crust.


*Shanghai steamed buns* (上海小籠包 seong hoi siu lung bau, 上海小龙包 Shànghǎi xiǎolóngbāo)
These "little juicy dumplings" are filled with meat or seafood and are famous for their flavour and rich soup inside. Shanghai steamed buns can be recognised by their unique design, as the filled wrapper is gathered up into fine folds at the top, prior to steaming.


*Taro root dumpling* or _*woo kok*_　(竽角 wu gok, 竽角 yùjiǎo)
This is made with mashed taro, stuffed with diced shiitake mushrooms, shrimp and pork. It is surrounded by a light and fluffy, crispy-brown dough.


*Spring rolls* (春卷 cheon gyun, 春卷 chūnjuǎn)
Spring rolls consist of various types of vegetables such as sliced carrot, cabbage, mushroom and wood ear fungus, and sometimes meat, are rolled inside a thin flour skin and deep fried for a crispy outside.


*Lotus leaf rice* (糯米雞 lo mai gai, 糯米鸡 nuòmǐjī)
Sticky rice is wrapped in a lotus leaf into a triangular or rectangular shape. This is steamed with ingredients inside the rice ball, such as an egg yolk, chestnut, pork and chicken. The leaf itself is not eaten, though its flavour infuses the rice during steaming.


*Rice noodle rolls* or _*cheong fun*_ (腸粉 cheong fan, 肠粉 chángfěn)
These are steamed rice noodle rolls served with different types of meats or vegetables inside, but can be served without any filling. Fried rice noodle rolls are fried after they are steamed. Popular fillings include shrimp and barbequed pork.


_*Siu Maai*_ (燒賣 siu maai, 烧卖 shāomài)
Small steamed dumplings with pork inside a thin wheat flour wrapper.


*Chien chang go* (千層糕 cin cang gou, 千层榚 qiāncénggāo)
A special dim sum dessert, the sweet "thousand-layer cake" with egg topping or _chien chang go_ is a piece of artistry as well. As suggested by its name, the cake is made up of many layers of sweet egg dough (though not usually a thousand).


*Sesame seed balls* (麻糰 , 麻糰 mátuǎn)
Especially popular at Chinese New Year, a doughy bread filled with red bean paste, rolled in sesame seeds, and deep fried.


*Mooli cakes* or _*lo bak go*_ (蘿蔔糕 lo bak go, 萝卜糕 luóbogāo)
These savory cakes are made from mashed daikon radishes mixed with bits of dried shrimp and pork that are steamed and then cut into slices and pan-fried.


*Phoenix Talons* (鳳爪 fung zau, 凤爪 fèngzhua)
These are actually chicken feet that are marinated and then steamed in a black bean sauce. One may also sometimes get clear, steamed chicken feet that is served with a vinegar dipping sauce. This version is known as "White Cloud Phoenix Talons" (白雲鳳爪; baiyunfengzhua; Cantonese: bak wun fung jau)


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## Brianschef (Jul 25, 2005)

And one more for the road...

*Dim Sum Dough*


1 package dry active yeast
1 T sugar
1/4 cup warm water
3 to 4 cups flour
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup warm milk
2 eggs 1/2 tsp salt



Combine yeast, warm water and sugar and let stand 5 minutes. Add warm milk, melted butter, salt and eggs and mix thoroughly. Add mixture to 3 cups of flour and stir vigorously with a fork to form a ball. Turn onto a floured board and knead for 5 to 10 minutes until dough is soft and elastic, adding more flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking. Form into a ball and place into a greased bowl. Allow to rest in a warm spot until dough ball doubles in size, about 1 hour. 


Heat the sesame oil in a wok and stir fry the pork until done, about 5 minutes. Add onions, garlic, soy sauce, oyster sauce and cornstarch and stir to thoroughly mix. Simmer until all ingredients are tender and the sauce is slightly thickened. Allow to cool. 


Punch down the dough and knead for about 2 minutes. Divide into 8 equal pieces and flatten each piece into a 4 inch disk. Place 1 tbsp of the filling in the center of each disk and fold the edges toward the center to form a bun. Place seam side down on a foil lined baking sheet, and allow to rise for 20 to 30 minutes. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes at 375, or until puffy and golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with remaining melted butter.


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## Garband (May 26, 2008)

Maybe they use bleached flour? I'm not sure if all all-purpose flour is bleached, but on my bag it says that it's bleached.


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## Katie H (May 26, 2008)

Garband said:


> Maybe they use bleached flour? I'm not sure if all all-purpose flour is bleached, but on my bag it says that it's bleached.




All-purpose flour comes in both bleached  and unbleached versions.


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## pavlova (May 27, 2008)

I just finished reading Crabapple Bakery Cupcake book, written by an Austrailian baker, and it in any "white flour" is presumed to be cake flour.  If you are looking for a lighter outcome, perhaps give the recipe a try with cake flour.

Good luck!


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