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There are certain things that make us all stop in our tracks and wonder why we haven’t heard about it already. For example, we have recently become aware of a special type of flour that we have been blissfully unaware of. If you have never heard of 00 flour before, we are here to help. Those who love to create their own homemade pizza crusts are sure to appreciate 00 flour.

Wheat flours like these are categorized by the amount of protein that they contain. Anyone who resides in Europe can tell you that their system might be a bit different. They base their classifications on how finely ground the flour is. These countries also analyze the amount of bran and germ that have been removed.

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Caputo type 00 flour is more commonly found in America. For many chefs, this is considered to be the gold standard. Naples chefs rely on this flour regularly and they would know. This is the Italian city where pizza was first perfected. Anyone who has the ability to purchase the pizzeria flour that can be cooked at temperatures of up to 700 degrees Fahrenheit should certainly do so.

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The protein content of 00 flour will vary depending on the quality of the wheat that is used. Soft wheat and hard wheat both have their pros and cons. Soft wheat is richer in protein and forms very strong gluten when cooked. Meanwhile, hard wheat is used by chefs who are looking for a more prolonged chew that can be provided by more elastic forms of gluten.

Image by Hardy Kloßek from Pixabay

All-purpose flour cannot be used as a perfect substitute for 00 flour. All-purpose flours are made from a blend of hard and soft wheat. If you are someone who likes a pizza crust that is on the chewier side, you may decide to use all-purpose flour instead. It’s a fine substitution to make but you’ll need to know about the aforementioned differences first.

We’re going to give it to you straight here. Pizza is the way to go if you are looking to get the most out of 00 flour.