10 Best Substitutes For Wheat Flour

Baking is a science, but there's room for substitution. That includes swapping out wheat flour in favor of other flours. To do so with finesse, it helps to look at flour not simply as a generic white powdery substance, but rather, as a composite of starch and protein (via Davidson Institute of Science Education).

In the case of wheat flour, the protein is gluten, or, more specifically, a network of glutenin and gliadin, which, when mixed with liquid, bind together to form gluten, according to Modernist Cuisine. Gluten acts like a "net" in bread dough made with wheat flour (or rye or barley flour, both of which also contain gluten, per Bob's Red Mill Blog). That net captures and organizes the little gas bubbles that form during leavening, lending the finished product lightness, chewiness, and some degree of elasticity. Determining the best substitute for wheat flour in any given baked goods recipe depends, as a starting matter, on what you desire in terms of consistency and structure in your finished product. 

We'll be discussing that below with regard to each of the following best substitutes for wheat flour. We'll also be discussing other factors to be taken into consideration when swapping wheat flour out for another flour, including texture (wheat flour is a dense powder) and flavor (most wheat flour is neutral in flavor). Finally, we'll also be offering some suggestions on how best to deploy these substitutes for wheat flour in your own cooking. 

Xanthan gum is a food additive that acts not only as a product stabilizer but also lends a much-needed chewiness and stretchiness to your gluten-free dough and your finished product, according to King Arthur Baking. Nevertheless, not all makers of gluten-free substitutes for all-purpose/multipurpose flour choose to include xanthan gum, and that includes the King Arthur Baking company.

"Our gluten-free flour doesn't contain xanthan gum, as we developed it to be ideal for a wide range of baked goods," the King Arthur company explains on its website. That means you can use King Arthur's all-purpose baking flour – or any other gluten-free flour whose ingredient list does not include xanthan gum – as a substitute for virtually anything in which you might otherwise use wheat flour. And that includes baking and cooking. For example, you can use it to dredge your fish sticks or fried chicken, and the absence of xanthan gum won't make any difference. In fact, your finished product might be somewhat lighter and crispier, if that's what you're looking for. 

However, when you're using it in baking, you'll want to add your own xanthan gum, which you can find in supermarkets everywhere. King Arthur suggests starting out by using a quarter teaspoon of xanthan gum for every 1 cup of flour that a recipe may call for. For flakier, softer baked goods, you can experiment with using less. For chewy baked goods such as bread or pizza, try using a bit more. 

Almond flour, which is made from ground, blanched almonds, can be substituted on a one-to-one basis for wheat flour, according to various sources, including The Neff Kitchen and Blue Diamond. Nevertheless, doing so will require a few adjustments to account for some of the essential differences between almond flour and wheat flour. For one thing, almond flour is moister than wheat flour – owing to its higher fat content, according to Neff Kitchen, which means doughs and batters made with it may be wetter than those made with wheat flour. Depending on your recipe, that may require the addition of some additional almond flour (which you should do only very gradually to make sure you don't overdo it).

Almond flour is also higher in protein than wheat flour, per VegFAQ, but because its texture is more coarse, and because the protein in almond flour is not and does not form gluten, almond flour could use a bit of help in binding together. For that purpose, both Neff and Blue Diamond recommend adding some egg (or egg white) to recipes in which you're substituting almond flour for wheat (because eggs help impart structure, per Sara Moulton). 

In addition, you can add xanthan gum (a quarter teaspoon per cup of flour called for), per Panhandle Milling. However, if you're looking to substitute almond flour for wheat flour in yeast-risen bread recipes, King Arthur Baking recommends doing so only with respect to a third of the wheat flour called for.

Rice flour is a popular ingredient in many pre-packaged gluten-free flour mixtures. However, it doesn't work quite so well on its own in baking because rice is harder and less absorbent than wheat and may, therefore, result in a gritty, gummy product. One way to counteract this, according to Kitchn, is to mix it with tapioca starch. The proportion recommended by Kitchn is a half cup of tapioca flour for every pound of rice flour. In most cases, you'll also want to add xanthan gum (one quarter teaspoon per cup of flour called for in the recipe) to lend the structure to your finished product that wheat flour would otherwise provide, according to Know Your Pantry. 

Rice flour is the primary ingredient in a number of different types of noodles, particularly in various parts of Asia, per Thrillist, but if you're looking to substitute rice flour in a straight-up "pasta" recipe (i.e., one that calls for wheat flour of one kind or another), you'll want to use the rice flour slash tapioca flour combination referenced above, plus xanthan gum and eggs, according to Gluten-Free Baking. 

Although rice flour isn't recommended for baking yeast-risen breads, it can work well in biscuits and quick breads. It can also be substituted for wheat flour on a one-to-one basis in gravies, stews, and soups, without adding any detectable flavor (per Savory Nature).

Millet flour is made from the millet seed, according to Bob's Red Mill, which touts millet flour as being "wonderfully nutritious and a good source of protein, essential amino acids, and dietary fiber" as well as the minerals, manganese, phosphorus, and magnesium. Millet flour doesn't have quite as neutral a flavor as wheat flour, according to Our Everyday Life, which describes millet flour's flavor as somewhat buttery. However, that may work to your advantage, depending on the recipe in which you're using millet flour as a wheat flour substitute. Millet flour also has a light yellow color that you'll want to take into account before adding it to your baked goods. 

According to Substitute Cooking, you can substitute millet flour for wheat flour on a cup-for-cup basis. However, Bob's Red Mill suggests replacing no more than a quarter of the wheat flour your recipe calls for with millet flour. Doing so helps deliver a "delicate cake-like crumb" to your baked goods. Because millet flour contains no gluten, it works best when combined with a helper ingredient such as xanthan gum or psyllium husks, both of which help infuse your baked good with some of the chewy structure that the gluten in wheat flour would normally offer, per PowerHungry.

No list of the best substitutes for wheat flour would be complete without a mention of chickpea flour. According to Bob's Red Mill, chickpea flour is made from raw chickpeas, aka garbanzo beans, which are some of the "creamiest and tastiest of beans" out there. Because chickpeas are so closely associated with those savory fried veggie fritters that are known as "falafel," you might think of chickpea flour as being best used in savory baked goods such as bread, pizza crust, flatbreads, and crackers. However, chickpea flour actually lends a "sweet, rich flavor" to all manner of baked goods, including the sweetest of cakes, muffins, and quick breads – and even those made with such assertive flavors as chocolate and pumpkin.

Like many of the other best wheat flour substitutes discussed herein, chickpea flour is an easy one-for-one swap for wheat flour in soups, stews, and sauces. However, in baking, Bob's Red Mill recommends replacing no more than a quarter of the wheat flour called for in the recipe with chickpea flour. On the other hand, others, including My Recipes and Lacademie suggest that it's perfectly acceptable to swap chickpea flour for wheat flour on a one-to-one basis, even in baked goods.