composition, rheological properties and breadmaking behaviour of stored flours

Flours milled from English (‘weak’), Canadian (‘strong’) and mixed English and Canadian wheats (‘medium’) had different rates of lipolysis (weak>medium>strong) during prolonged storage at ambient temperatures (average about 12°C). Lipolysis was more rapid in the medium flour at 25°C, but was very slow in ‘control’ flours kept at ‐ 20°C in an inert atmosphere. Loss of baking quality in stored flours was assessed using the Chorleywood Bread Process (CBP), a long fermentation process (LFP) and the Activated Dough Development process (ADD). The loaf volume changes varied with the flour type and test method, especially depending on whether or not fat was included in the recipes. In tests with fat, the CBP was the most sensitive to deteriorative changes (strong≃medium>weak); with the medium and strong flours, loaf volumes were nearly constant for 24 months before decreasing rapidly. Deterioration became apparent more gradually when using LFP and ADD tests with fat. When fat was omitted, short‐term improvement (weak>medium>strong) occurred with all three baking methods, but there was subsequent loss of volume. To account for these changes in baking behaviour, it is suggested that the tests differ in their sensitivity to flour type and variations in dough composition, especially to the level of bakery fat, the level of fatty acids (generally deleterious), and to protein changes which were also detectable by rheological tests on stored flour doughs (flour ‘maturation’; generally beneficial).