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Self-rising Flour Substitutes

Sonia Nair
There are numerous recipes that require self-rising flour as an ingredient. If you are looking for a self-rising flour substitute, go through the information here for some inputs about the same.
Self-rising flour is an ingredient in recipes like cakes, cookies and pastries. It is nothing but flour which is added with leavening agents and salt before its packaging. You might have noticed that recipes that require this flour do not require salt or leavening agents. If you add salt and baking soda to this flour, it can spoil the end product.
In case of self-rising flour, leavening agents (baking powder) and salt are uniformly distributed, so they make the food products more fluffy and light. Usually, the flour is sifted before its packaging and this explains its smooth and uniform texture.
Self-rising flour has low protein content as compared to flours like all-purpose flour. Wheat protein or gluten may make the baked products more dense or tough in structure. This explains why it is mostly used in cakes that are low in protein. The protein content and the amount of leavening agents in it are usually given on the label attached to the product.

Substitute for Self Rising Flour

A substitute may be needed if you run out of self-rising flour and you need it urgently to prepare some recipe. Substitution may also be needed if you use this flour sparingly and buying a whole packet would be a waste of money, as you need only a cup. In both these cases, you can replace this ingredient with a substitute for self-rising flour.
  • In order to prepare a substitute for self-rising flour, you need all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt.
  • If the recipe needs one cup of flour, take the same amount of all-purpose flour with a dry measure.
  • Take all-purpose flour in a container and mix the other ingredients. For every cup of all-purpose flour, add 1½ tsp of baking powder and ½ tsp salt.
  • The measurements should be perfect as any variation may affect the texture of the end product.
  • Thoroughly mix the ingredients and your self-rising flour substitute is ready.
  • You may also sieve the flour, two to three times, so that the baking powder and salt get mixed up uniformly. This gives a uniform texture to the baked product.
  • You can use this flour for preparing bread too. But in such cases, you have to avoid putting salt, once again.
  • If you are using this substitute, then don't add salt, even if it is given as an ingredient in the recipe.
Another important point is, once you mix all the ingredients of the food recipe, put it in the oven as soon as possible. This is because the baking powder gets activated as soon it is exposed to moisture. If this mixture rises before you put it in the oven, it will collapse inside. This ends up with flattened cakes and sagging cookies.
It is very easy to make this flour, provided you have the required ingredients. Self-rising flour substitution does not change the taste or texture of your recipe. So next time you run out of this flour, don't worry. The mentioned recipe will ensure that your delicacy turns out just fine.