Plain vs self raising

Which flour is best for the job?

Flour mills produce a range of around 400 different flour types for their customers in bakeries and other food businesses. Plain flour and self raising flour are just two of the many types. There is a more limited range available in retail outlets; but which is best for the job?

It is worth noting that UK flour is not bleached.

The following is a quick guide.

Plain flour or self raising flour?

Dish	Flour required	More help
Batter	Plain flour	Take a look at our trouble-shooting page on batter to help avoid the pitfalls of batter
Biscuits	Plain flour	We know you’re sweet enough, so why not give these savoury biscuits a try.
Bread	Strong flour AKA breadmaking flour	A good loaf is a great thing. So if you’re new to breadmaking or thinking of taking it up, head over to our ‘getting started’ section to hone your skills.
Cakes	Self-raising flour (or plain flour with baking powder)	Paul Hollywood shows you his top tips for perfecting your cake-making skills in our troubleshooting video
Crumpets	Strong flour AKA breadmaking flour	Take a look at our crumpet recipe and follow our top tips for making your own crumpet rings!
Pancakes	Plain flour	Watch our trouble-shooting video, with Paul Hollywood as he helps you avoid the most common mistakes in making pancakes
Pastry	Plain flour	Find out our top tips for getting perfect pastry in our step-by-step photographic guide
Pizza	Strong flour AKA breadmaking flour	Get the children in your life into the kitchen baking these delicious funny face pizzas
Scones	Self-raising flour OR strong flour	Conventional wisdom suggests using self-raising flour. But baking God, Paul Hollywood, uses strong breadmaking flour. Try out his recipe and see what you think.
Sauces	Plain flour (or cornflour)	If you’re new to making a sauce from scratch take a look at our photographic step-by-step guide to a foolproof sauce
Yorkshire puddings	Plain flour	Take a look at our trouble-shooting page for all the best info on making batters and Yorkies

You can also find more information on flour types in our booklet Flours for homebaking including information on which companies produce what flours and which supermarkets supply them.

Flour conversions

There are different systems for categorising flour in the UK, European countries and the USA. The table below provides a rough indication of equivalence. However the situation is more complicated and can depend on the protein content of the flour and the type of wheat used by the miller.

UK	Germany	France	Italy	USA
100% wholemeal	Type 1700	Type 150	Integrale	Wholewheat
Brown	Type 1050	Type 110	2	First clear flour
Lightbrown	Type 812	Type 80	1	High gluten flour
White	Type 550	Type 55	0	All purpose flour
Patent white	Type 405	Type 45	00	Pastry flour