Editing Flour (section)

=== Type numbers ===

In some markets, the different available flour varieties are labeled according to the ash mass that remains after a sample is incinerated in a [[laboratory oven]] (typically at {{convert|550|C}} or {{convert|900|C}}, see [[international standard]]s [[International Organization for Standardization|ISO]] 2171 and [[International Association for Cereal Science and Technology|ICC]] 104/1<ref>{{cite web |url=https://icc.or.at/publications/icc-standards/standards-overview/104-1-standard-method |title=104/1 Determination of Ash in Cereals and Cereal Products |publisher=International Association for Cereal Science and Technology |date=8 March 2018 |access-date=29 January 2021 |archive-date=3 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210203162913/https://icc.or.at/publications/icc-standards/standards-overview/104-1-standard-method |url-status=live }}</ref>). This is an easily verified indicator for the fraction of the whole grain remains in the flour, because the mineral content of the starchy endosperm is much lower than that of the outer parts of the grain. Flour made from all parts of the grain ([[milling yield|extraction rate]]: 100%) leaves about {{convert|2|g}} ash or more per {{convert|100|g}} dry flour. Plain white flour with an extraction rate of 50–60% leaves about {{convert|0.4|g}}.
* German flour type numbers ({{lang|de|Mehltypen}}) indicate the amount of ash (measured in milligrams) obtained from 100 g of the dry mass of this flour. Standard wheat flours (defined in [[DIN]] 10355) range from type 405 for normal white wheat flour for baking, to strong bread flour types 550, 812, and the darker types 1050 and 1600 for wholegrain breads.
* French flour type numbers ({{lang|fr|type de farine}}) are a factor of 10 smaller than those used in Germany, because they indicate the ash content (in milligrams) per 10 g flour. Type 55 is the standard, hard-wheat white flour for baking, including puff pastries ({{lang|fr|pâte feuilletée}}). Type 45 is often called pastry flour, and is generally from a softer wheat (this corresponds to what older French texts call {{lang|fr|farine de gruau}}). Some recipes use type 45 for croissants, for instance,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.supertoinette.com/fiche-cuisine/423/farine-de-ble.html |title=Supertoinette page in French on flour types |publisher=Supertoinette.com |access-date=2011-10-31 |archive-date=2011-11-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111101133958/http://www.supertoinette.com/fiche-cuisine/423/farine-de-ble.html |url-status=live }}</ref> although many French bakers use type 55 or a combination of types 45 and 55.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}} Types 65, 80, and 110 are strong bread flours of increasing darkness, and type 150 is a wholemeal flour.
* Czech flour types describes roughness of milling instead of amount of ash, though sometimes a numbering system is used, it is not a rule. Czechs determine following four basic types of mill: extra soft wheat flour ({{lang|cs|výběrová hladká mouka}}, 00), soft wheat flour ({{lang|cs|hladká mouka}}, T650), fine wheat flour ({{lang|cs|polohrubá mouka}}), rough wheat flour ({{lang|cs|hrubá mouka}}) and farina wheat flour ({{lang|cs|pšeničná krupice}})
* Argentine flour uses roughness of milling as well, being 0, 00, 000 and 0000, where the number of zeroes indicates its refinement.
* Polish flour type numbers, as is the case in Germany, indicate the amount of ash in 100 g of the dry mass of the flour. Standard wheat flours (defined by the [[Polish Committee for Standardization|PKN]] in PN-A-74022:2003) range from type 450 to 2000.<ref name="Polski Stds">Polskie Normy: ''PN-A-74022:2003 Przetwory zbożowe. Mąka pszenna'' (Wheat flour) and ''PN-A-74032: 2002 Przetwory zbożowe. Mąka żytnia'' (Rye flour).</ref>

In the United States and the United Kingdom, no numbered standardized flour types are defined, and the ash mass is only rarely given on the label by flour manufacturers. However, the legally required standard nutrition label specifies the protein content of the flour, which is also a way for comparing the extraction rates of different available flour types.

In general, as the extraction rate of the flour increases, so do both the protein and the ash content. However, as the extraction rate approaches 100% (whole meal), the protein content drops slightly, while the ash content continues to rise.

The following table shows some typical examples of how protein and ash content relate to each other in wheat flour:

{| class=wikitable
|-
!rowspan=2|Residual ash mass
!rowspan=2|Protein
! colspan="10" |Wheat flour type
|-
!US||UK||German/Polish||French||Italian||Czech/Slovak||Polish<ref name="Polski Stds"/>||Argentine||Japanese
!Chinese
|-
|~0.4%||~9%||Pastry flour||Soft flour||405||45||00||Hladká mouka výběrová 00||tortowa||0000||Hakurikiko (薄力粉)
|dījīn miànfěn (低筋麵粉)
|-
|~0.55%||~11%||All-purpose flour||Plain flour||550||55||0||Hladká mouka||luksusowa||000||Churikiko (中力粉)
|zhōngjīn miànfěn (中筋麵粉)
|-
|~0.8%||~14%||Bread flour or "high gluten flour"||Strong or hard||812||80||1||Polohrubá mouka||chlebowa||00||Kyorikiko (強力粉)
|gāojīn miànfěn (高筋麵粉)
|-
|~1.1%||~15%||First clear flour||Very strong or hard||1050||110||2||Hrubá mouka||sitkowa||0||kyorikimatsufun (強力末粉)
|tè gāojīn miànfěn (特高筋麵粉)
|-
|>1.5%||~13%||White whole wheat||Wholemeal||1600||150||Farina integrale di grano tenero||Celozrnná mouka||graham, razowa||{{frac|1|2}} 0||Zenryufun (全粒粉)
|quánmài miànfěn (全麥麵粉)
|}

This table is only a rough guideline for converting bread recipes. Since flour types are not standardized in many countries, the numbers may differ between manufacturers. There is no French type corresponding to the lowest ash residue in the table. The closest is French Type 45.

There is no official Chinese name corresponding to the highest ash residue in the table. Usually such products are imported from Japan and the Japanese name ''zenryufun'' (全粒粉) is used, or it is called ''quánmài miànfěn'' (全麥麵粉).

It is possible to determine ash content from some US manufacturers. However, US measurements are based on wheat with a 14% moisture content. Thus, a US flour with 0.48% ash would approximate a French Type 55.

Other measurable properties of flour as used in [[baking]] can be determined using a variety of specialized instruments, such as the [[farinograph]].