Wheat Flour is a essential flour for making Indian flatbreads like Chapathi, Phulka, Roti, Kulcha, and also for making whole wheat bread varieties. How to make Wheat Flour is explained in this post with step by step pictures and video.
Wheat Flour made at home is much healthier than the store bought ones as it is minus preservatives and yes its wheat Flour with full goodness of whole wheat. Also with Homemade Atta – the ratio and variety of wheat used to make wheat flour can be customised according to our preference and needs.
About Wheat Flour
Wheat Flour is the flour made by milling / dry grinding wheat. Wheat flour as we all know is the base for lot of recipes – roti, paratha, phulka, wheat dosa, chakli and lot more. So good the flour be – so be the dish & food.
Wheat flour has to be brown, soft & smooth in texture. Coarse powder might make the rotis
slightly hard & tough – so when you grind wheat at flour mill ask them to grind it to fine powder.
Though storebought atta claims to be whole wheat I am really not sure what variety whole wheat they use or do they mix white or plain flour with it. So its always good to make homemade wheat flour for daily use.
Why Wheat Flour at home is healthier?
Wheat grain has bran – the outer cover of the wheat which is rich in fiber, endosperm – the meatier portion of the whea t& germ – the vitamin, protein rich part of the wheat. Wheat Flour is the product of grinding all these parts together making it to be called Whole Wheat Flour. The presence of bran reduces the gluten development and the presence of germ make the flour retain wheat protein, vitamins & minerals.
Commercialization of the wheat flour might have separated bran from wheat for oil production which results in white wheat flour with higher gluten content. Wheat flour homemade ensures whole of the wheat is ground and therefore healthier than refined versions available at the stores which is ground without bran.
I usually grind 5 kgs of wheat flour which last us for about 45 days. These days I am using a lot of wheat flour in my baking too so it lasts only for a month. Baked goodies with wheat flour is no less and tastes so good and my kids love them so much either whole wheat breads or muffins or cakes they just love it.
Wheat Flour – A secret & tip
Wheat is available in lot of varieties – Punjab, Samba, Sharbati and lot more. Sharbati is the meatier & best wheat variety while Samba Wheat is the basmati equivalent of wheat and Punjab wheat is the regular & common variety. I normally mix them and grind so that it is tastier & at the same time affordable.
Wheat mix in the wheat flour I grind is in the proportion of 3Kg of Punjab Wheat and 2 Kg of Samba Wheat. My family is used to this proportion now and whenever we get flour from stores it makes us realise how tasty & good the home made wheat flour is. You can try different mix ratios based on the availability, accessibility & affordability.
Ingredients
- Punjab Wheat – Punjab wheat is the most common variety available at all stores.
- Samba Wheat – Samba wheat is the basmati equivalent of wheat.
Wheat Flour – Floured with many names & variations
Wheat flour, Atta, Chakki Flour, Chapati flour, Chakki Atta, Whole Wheat Flour all mean one and the same Wheat Flour. Wheat Flour production has been industrialized to suit the varying needs at kitchen – roti which uses whole wheat flour, naan / parotta which uses refined wheat flour, baking which uses white all-purpose flour (grinding without bran). Be cautious to select whole wheat flour or multigrain flour for making roti & wheat flatbreads and refined wheat flour/all-purpose flour/maida for baking & white flatbreads. This recipe is for whole wheat flour and check out the homemade multigrain wheat flour and homemade maida / all-purpose flour already posted here.
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Homemade Wheat Flour | Chapati Flour
Ingredients
- 3 kgs Punjab Wheat
- 2 kgs Samba Wheat
Instructions
- I always use a combination of punjab wheat and sambar wheat while grinding as it gives soft chapathi / phulka. The ratio I am using is 3 kgs punjab wheat with 2 kgs samba wheat.
- Left side yellow bowl : Samba Wheat – Right Side Purple Bowl : Punjab Wheat
- Just showing the sample fo both for easy identification.
- Now mix 3 kgs punjab wheat with 2 kgs samba wheat. Remove any speck or dirt and check if any and remove it.
- Rinse it well.
- Sun dry for a day or 2 until completely dry and crisp.
- It took 1 complete day for me to dry.
- Now all ready to go for grinding in mill.
- While giving for grinding make sure to tell them the flour needs to be very fine.
- After grinding open and keep for sometime as it will be very hot. If closed and kept moisture may develop due to the heat and will wet the flour.
- My flour is very fine so I did not sieve it. If it is coarse then you may need to sieve it once before storing.
- Store in a clean dry airtight container to be stored in kitchen. I usually keep in a jar for regular use and store the bulk in the big thooku itself(the steel container shown).
- Homemade Atta is ready!
Video
Notes
- Sieving is optional. But if your flour is coarse then sieve once atleast and store.
- You can even use just punjab wheat.But when samba is added it gives more softer phulka/chapati.
- You can get whole wheat in any supermarket, its easily available.
- This measure had been passed on to me from amma and I am following it for the past 8 years.
How to make Wheat Flour
1.I always use a combination of Punjab Wheat and Sambar wheat while grinding as it gives soft chapathi / phulka. The ratio I am using is 3 kgs Punjab Wheat with 2 kgs Samba Wheat.
Left side Yellow Bowl : Samba Wheat
Right Side Purple Bowl : Punjab Wheat
Just showing the sample fo both for easy identification.
2.Now mix 3 kgs Punjab Wheat with 2 kgs Samba Wheat. Remove any speck or dirt and check if any and remove it.
3.Rinse it well.
4.Sun dry for a day or 2 until completely dry and crisp.
5.It took 1 complete day for me to dry.
6.Now all ready to go for grinding in mill.
7.While giving for grinding make sure to tell them the flour needs to be very fine.
8.After grinding open and keep for sometime as it will be very hot. If closed and kept moisture may develop due to the heat and will wet the flour.
9.My flour is very fine so I did not sieve it. If it is coarse then you may need to sieve it once before storing.
10.Store in a clean dry airtight container to be stored in kitchen. I usually keep in a jar for regular use and store the bulk in the big thooku itself(the steel container shown).
Homemade Atta is ready!
Expert Tips
- Sieving is optional. But if your flour is coarse then sieve once atleast and store.
- You can even use just punjab wheat.But when samba is added it gives more softer phulka/chapati.
- You can get whole wheat in any supermarket, its easily available.
- This measure had been passed on to me from amma and I am following it for the past 8 years.
- If you get sharbati wheat then you can replace punjab wheat with it and grind it along with samba wheat.
FAQs
1.What is Wheat Flour?
Wheat Flour is the flour made by milling / dry grinding wheat. Wheat flour is used for making Indian flatbreads like chapathi, phulka, roti, wheat dosa etc.
2.Is whole wheat flour, atta and chapathi flour same?
Yes whole wheat flour, atta flour and chapathi flour are the same just the name differs.
3.Is multigrain atta and regular atta same?
Multigrain atta includes whole wheat along with multigrains like oats, maize, ragi, chana, millets etc. Regular atta is grinding whole wheat kernels along to yield wheat flour.
4.Is wheat flour same as refined wheat flour?
No they are different. Wheat flour is just grinding whole wheat to yield wheat flour / chapathi flour. Refined wheat flour is maida or white flour is obtained by a process which removes the most nutrient parts the bran and germ.
5.What are the benefits of wheat flour?
Wheat flour is achieved by grinding whole wheat kernels with bran and endosperm making it one of the most healthy flour for everyday use. The presence of bran reduces the gluten development and the presence of germ make the flour retain wheat protein, vitamins & minerals.
6.Can I grind wheat flour at home?
I have tried with mixer which even grinds turmeric. However for wheat it is a bit coarse so I prefer giving it to flour mill for bulk storage. You can check my trial here.
Nivedhanams Sowmya
wow I always thought chapathi flour is made with whole Punjab godumai only… interesting to see that samba is also added… thanks for the information..
Veena Theagarajan
nice back to basic post.. my mum always does this.. I love the smell of fresh grinded wheat flour
Ten Dek
Where could I buy Punjab & Samba wheat? I live in California. I love Indian chapathi specially when it gets puffed. Please let me know what store. Thank you.
SHARMILEE J
Check out in any indian groceries stores
Ten Dek
I will. Thank you, Sharmilee J.
Chandrani Banerjee
Very interesting…
Sangeetha Vairavel
Eppadi thaan ivalo porumaiya post ezhuthureengalo…. Konjam, illa illa rombave poramaiya iruku…. Super ponga !!!!
Medha
Hey Sharmilee, CONGRATULATIONS
Your food blog is listed in the Top 30 Food blogs of 2013 in Rediff.com
Check out this link
http://www.rediff.com/getahead/slide-show/slide-show-1-food-recipe-the-top-30-indian-food-bloggers-of-2013-/20131209.htm
Great going.
VCMouli
Yes you are very correct to declare and also prepare homemade Aata.This is how my mother used to do always for years and we never ever bought Aata in bags as it is done mostly for everything.My mother even used to get 'kadalumaavu' done after washing the kadaluparuppu at home.
Just one point -if you sieve this Aata maavu then the fibre is lost.My moth did not remove the bran from the Aata but of course it is personal preference.
You are indeed very health conscious which is great but you also practice methods to help towards maintaining good health.Excellent !
SHARMILEE J
That sounds great to make kadalamaavu at home…will have to try that once
Though I have heard sieving is optional…I have also read that its not advisable to use the flour without sieving…so we always sieve it once before storing.But yes as you say its purely our preference.
Unknown
Wow! You and Jeyashri ( food blogger from SG) have the same bottle ?? She put her garam masala in the same one!! :):) What a coincidence!
P.S: I love both your blogs and Raji's too! I constantly hop between the three ! 🙂
MSUSMA
Very useful post. Great clicks as always.
DHIVYA
Sharmilee,
I will grind wheat flour as you prepared and i will add some soy beans and sundal before grinding.
Also i prepare gram flour – kadalamavu from kadala paruppu.
Ragi flour from ragi millet, red chilli powder from dried red chillies, Dhaniya powder from Dhaniya seeds.
SHARMILEE J
I add multigrains too but only occasionally while grinding…have already posted mulitgrain atta recipe.Yes we too make our own homemade red chilli,turmeric and coriander powders.
Thats good to hear about ragi and gram flour being homemade….will have to try it sometime.
meyon kills
is it possible to grind wheat at home… i mean home
grinder
SHARMILEE J
No way…
janani
Hi sharmi,
Thanks for all your recipes. Since i didnt get samba wheat anywhere around. i grinded whole wheat 2kg + soya 250 gms. While making dough it was sticky and difficult to knead,.and chapati getting hard soon. Tried using milk, warm water, oil and 10 mins of kneading.
Will chapathi/roti be soft if i grind whole wheat alone? or less amount of soya or anything else need to be added?
may be our teeths are used to soft phulkas of pillsbury 😛
Need advise on soft chapathi / roti on grinded whole wheat.
SHARMILEE J
The proportion for grinding is very important…If you want to make multigrain atta then check my other post for measures.If you don't get get sambar wheat then you can grind it with fully punjab wheat, am sure homemade atta will yield more softer rotis
kalai vani
Can we make poori with this flour
SHARMILEE J
Yes!
kala
Hi how to prepare ragi flour at home and ragi grind like vermicelli in mill….tell the steps please…..
Deepa
HI,is samba (long wheat)available in regular stores,can you please suggest some places where i can get them in andhra pradesh
bibi ko
What is punjabi wheat?in kerala where I get punjab wheat?is samba wheat is soojI Gothambe?
SHARMILEE J
There are varieties of wheat available in supermarkets, check them out
Kavitha
Hi sharmi,
No terrace to dry in sunlight, instead of that shall try for fry, in this method any change in taste or problem of storing such long time.
Sharmilee J
I am really not sure…roasting will change the texture I guess sorry cant guide you in this regard
Kavitha B
Why mix any specific reason as I bought jus 2 kg punjab wheat… Is is ok or should I buy sambha wheat also
Sharmilee J
It is ok to go ahead with just punjab wheat alone…when samba wheat is mixed up it gives nice softness to the rotis
juliya
what is the difference between samba wheat and punjab wheat?
krithi
Sharmilee sister i am a big fan of your recipes. Your pictorial rep attracts me. Now to grind wheat can i dry roast wheat as i couldn’t dry them in direct sunlight. I live in a place where i couldn’t get enough sunlight and its not possible to sun dry. Plz give your suggestions sister & then only i will make my home made wheat flour.
Sharmilee J
Thanks a lot! You can fan dry it too
Krithi
Sis!!! Thanks a lot!!!
Swetha
Hi shamilee, in the place I stay (US) I haven’t seen whole wheat in the Indian stores near by.. but i always get broken wheat (Dalia) and ofcos no mill. My question is can I grind the broken wheat in my mixie and make the flour in batches? Also, will I even get atta if I grind broken wheat?
TIA..
Sharmilee J
You can use whole wheat itself…Yes you can grind broken wheat in mixie thats what I have done too.No you will not get atta grinding broken wheat
Swetha
I don’t get whole wheat here.. so, it’s ok to grind broken wheat to get the flour right?
Sharmilee J
yes you can try with broken wheat
anuradha sriram
Mam, Is Samba wheat same as Kapli wheat? Can you please clarify.
Can we make soft rotis with Samba wheat alone?
Thank you
Sharmilee J
I dont think both are same..and if you make chapathi with just samba wheat the chapathis break apart easily so a proper measure of wheat varieties is a must for making a good chapathi flour
Priyagunasekar
Hi Sharmi shall I kadai roast wheat
Sharmilee J
You can try it but am really not sure as I havent tried it that way
Veena
Nice blog. Very informative