Why do many serious home bakers prefer hard and soft flours over all-purpose flour?
Soft wheat (also called pastry) flour is the better choice for baked goods, that do not need to rely upon a high gluten content - most biscuits, pastries, and cakes, for example.
When you use all-purpose flour for bread making, your bread lacks sufficient gluten. When you use all-purpose flour for most cakes and other delicate baked goods, their texture will be tough because of too much gluten. All-purpose flour is not without advantages. It is adequate for the needs of the average home baker. Unlike hard and soft wheat flours, all-purpose flour is available in every grocery store. Mainly for that reason, many cookbooks automatically specify it for all their baking recipes. And all-purpose flour is equal or superior to hard and soft wheat flours for making certain baked goods, notably popovers.
** Asian Recipes **
