Flour brings volume, structure and flavor to baked goods. Its gluten content is responsible for imparting strength and cohesion to the finished product. Traditional all-purpose flour contains 11 percent gluten-forming protein and typically requires the addition of a leavening agent such as baking soda, baking powder, whisked egg whites or cream of tartar. Self-rising flour is a mixture that contains flour with 8 percent gluten-forming protein, baking powder and salt. It’s a key ingredient in Southern baking and usually used in cakes and biscuits. Replacing self-rising flour with all-purpose flour can change the flavor and “crumb,” or texture, of your baked goods.
Step 1
Read your recipe’s ingredient list and instructions thoroughly. If it calls for “1 cup sifted self-rising flour,” you must sift the all-purpose flour and then measure it. Likewise, if the recipe calls for “1 cup self-rising flour, sifted,” you must measure out the substituting all-purpose flour first and then sift it.
Step 2
Replace each cup of self-rising flour in the recipe with 1 cup of all-purpose flour plus 1 1/2 tsp. of baking powder and 1/4 tsp. of salt. If a recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of self-rising flour, for example, use 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 1/4 tsp. of baking powder and 3/4 tsp. of salt.
Step 3
Measure the all-purpose flour with accuracy by scooping the cup into the flour and leveling off the excess with the back of a knife.
Step 4
Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt until the mixture is uniform. Recipes that call for self-rising flour don’t typically require additional baking powder or salt, but check the ingredient list to make sure.
Step 5
Use the all-purpose flour mixture exactly as the recipe indicates for the self-rising flour.
Tips and Warnings
- Cake flour has a more similar protein content to that of self-rising flour, and is a better substitution than all-purpose flour. If you have cake flour on hand, replace 1 cup of self-rising flour with 1 cup of cake flour, plus 1 tsp. of baking powder and 1/4 tsp. of salt. “Cake Love” author Warren Brown recommends weighing all of your ingredients on a scale rather than measuring them out by volume with cups and spoons. This is especially important for an accurate flour measurement, he notes, because the traditional scoop-and-level method compresses the flour 20 to 30 percent more than a recipe calls for by weight. Consequently, measuring flour by the cup rather than by weight substantially increases the gluten content and can make your finished product tougher and chewier. One cup of all-purpose flour weighs 130 g, while one cup of self-rising flour weighs 140 g.
References
- “The Baking Answer Book”; Lauren Chattman; 2009
- “Cake Love”; Warren Brown; 2008
- JoyofBaking.com: Ingredient Substitutions
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