It is common practice to sift flour before baking. But is it really so necessary? Does the sifted flour really make the dough thicker? And how to sift flour correctly?
Instructions
Step 1
Flour is a food product obtained by grinding grains of wheat, rye, buckwheat, oats, barley, corn, and rice. The size of the grains after grinding is different. Flour is thinner, softer and white, has good gluten, easily cakes and absorbs moisture. After sifting, the flour is warmed up, loosened and saturated with oxygen. It is also recommended to sift flour to separate impurities formed as a result of storage - flour lumps, burlap fibers, flour worms.
Step 2
There are several ways to sift flour. More familiar is to use a sieve. A sieve or sieve is a wide hoop with a mesh of varying density stretched on one side. The mesh can be either metal or woven from fishing line. The hoop can be wooden, plastic, metal.
To sift, you need to pour the flour into the sieve on the mesh. Substitute the dishes from below, where the sifted flour will fall. Shake the sieve lightly.
Now in stores selling dishes and various household appliances, a mechanical sieve is sold in the form of a mug with a handle. When you press the lever in the handle of the mug, a twisting mechanism is activated, which pushes the flour through the sieve.
Step 3
The following methods are recommended when you are confident that the flour is clean and does not require cleaning from impurities.
If no strainer is available, a colander can also be used. Cover with a layer of cheesecloth and shake the colander with light movements, after putting flour in it. The effect is the same as after using the sieve.
If the flour has been stored in an airtight container for a short time, the sifting process can be made easier.
Open the container with flour and lightly knock on the container wall with a light movement of your palm (while the flour is inside the container).
Take a bowl, add flour and with two spoons make movements, as if stirring salad, up and down. The flour will be light in just 1-2 minutes. In these cases, it will be saturated with oxygen.
