Alternative meat, alternative sucrose,alternative dairy... People have gone further and further in the search for healthy food alternatives, and now it is the turn of alternative flour. Alternative flour, as the name suggests, refers to a food product that is different from traditional flour. It may be gluten-free, lower in carbs, or more nutritious. At present, there are companies at home and abroad that focus on replacing flour. How do they achieve it? Which tracks are you starting from? What is the main source of raw materials?

Simple Mills' alternative flour raw material selection mainly includes: watermelon seed powder, flax seed powder, sunflower seed powder and cashew nut powder. The founder of Simple Mills said that watermelon seed powder was chosen because it facilitates a delicious and crisp product texture and mouthfeel, as well as protein, high-quality fats and micronutrients such as iron, magnesium, zinc, and more. At the same time, watermelon seeds are also conducive to the diversification of crops, which is the key to regenerative agriculture. New raw material exploration - chestnut flour The company is also exploring a new raw material, chestnut flour. Simple Mills wants to make chestnut flour an important ingredient in its sugar-free pancakes and waffles. Chestnut flour is a niche product, but as a gluten-free flour it has multiple functions and high nutritional value. Compared with other nuts, chestnuts have lower fat content and mainly contain carbohydrates, so the flour made from chestnuts has a certain similarity with ordinary wheat flour, but it does not have the gluten of flour. Dried chestnuts have long been made into a tannin-sweet flour that is used in everything from pancakes to cakes. Some suppliers believe that American chestnuts may become mainstream in the next decade, replacing imported coconut flour.

Potential alternative to flour raw materials?

In addition to chestnuts, acorns from oak trees are also making their mark. Acorn powder are high in protein, potassium, magnesium, calcium and vitamin B6, fiber, and are naturally gluten-free. A project led by Marcie Mayer on a Greek island is helping farmers re-collect acorn caps for export to tanneries, while also creating and selling acorn flour-based products such as acorn biscuits, acorns Sub spaghetti etc. "Acorn flour is very different from wheat flour, it's darker in color, has a stronger aroma, and is often mixed with wheat flour," says Marcie Mayer. Similarly, a California company makes four gluten-free varieties. Acorn sticks. It can be seen that acorn replacement flour is being commercialized.

While the unpopular crop mesquite is dominated by commercialization, bakers who are skilled in baking are also exploring more alternative flour raw materials. Don Guerra found a crop that is not well known in the country - mesquite. The fleshy part of the pods of the mesquite contains carbohydrates, as well as soluble and insoluble fiber; while the mesquite flour is rich in calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium and zinc, this flour has a malty, nutty, smoky and sweet taste Flavor, usually with hints of cocoa, maple, molasses and hazelnut in people's mouth. Don Guerra applies mesquite flour to bread. In addition, there are many raw materials that can be used as alternative flours, such as chickpea flour, banana flour, and so on.

Domestic companies are also emerging in the direction of alternative flour. The food brand DREAM LEAGUE is also targeting the healthy baked goods track by replacing wheat flour with light carb flours such as flaxseed flour, coconut flour, almond flour, wheat protein flour and psyllium husk flour. And based on this, launched a number of series of toast products. the company’s founder, said that the carb content of its ketogenic¹ toast series is less than 2%, which is lower than the 15%-20% of traditional toast. Taken together, alternative flours are also becoming a new trend. At the raw material level, in addition to the mainstream raw materials such as flaxseed flour, coconut flour, and almond flour, watermelon seed flour, chestnut flour, and acorn flour are also being tried and applied. As consumers, we expect more alternative flour-based products to enjoy richer, healthier flavors.