What is actually the difference between flour and meal?

Dedicated home bakers undoubtedly have plenty of bags of them in the pantry: flour and meal. Whether you enjoy baking or not, do you know the difference between flour and meal? And can you use them for the same recipes, or not?

One thing is certain: they are definitely not the same.

What is the difference between meal and flour?

Flour and meal both come from the grain kernel, but there is a clear difference. For meal, you can use the mnemonic ‘meal means more’. In other words, the entire grain kernel is used for meal. All parts of the kernel therefore remain in meal. When the kernels are finely ground, you can see the germ and bran with the naked eye.

So what exactly is flour? Essentially nothing more and nothing less than sifted meal. All the germ and bran are sifted out of the meal, leaving behind a white flour. Place meal and flour next to each other and you can immediately see a difference.

Differences between meal and flour: texture and colour

But there are more differences between flour and meal. Meal clearly has a coarser texture than flour; this is due to the germ and bran still present in it. Flour, on the other hand, is velvety smooth. The entire grain kernel also gives meal a slightly browner colour than flour. Flour is truly pure white.

Another difference: meal is considerably more nutritious than flour. Simply because the germ and bran that remain in meal are extremely nutritious. Flour is much less so.

Can you substitute meal and flour for each other?

So flour and meal certainly have some differences. That is why you cannot simply switch flour for meal in a recipe if you happen to have a bag of meal at home but no flour. Flour is perfect for baking cake and cookies (these wonderfully crumbly speculaas cookies, for example, with a particularly unusual extra ingredient!). Meal, on the other hand, is used for bread and pancakes. Pancakes made with flour therefore do not really produce the result you are hoping for. So after the first failed pancake, do not cling to the myth—just grab a bag of flour.

Facts about flour and meal

Here are a few more facts about flour and meal, so you can casually share them with your friends later:

• Wholemeal flour does not exist! That is simply impossible, because the germ and bran have been sifted out. Wholemeal meal does exist.
• What comes before the word ‘flour’ or ‘meal’ indicates which grain the product is made from. Wheat flour therefore comes from wheat, while almond meal is made from finely ground almonds.
• Patent flour is extremely finely ground flour. It contains more gluten than regular wheat flour.

Happy baking!

Also read:

• This is the secret ingredient for the lightest, crispiest waffles
• 5 baking mistakes you make (and how to fix them)
• What exactly is in supermarket bake-off rolls is almost always… a mystery

Sources: Heel Holland Bakt, Rutger Bakt