Gluten

The muscle of dough created by the bonding of protein molecules during the kneading process. The gluten gives dough the stretchability to grow by trapping the carbon dioxide that was released during fermentation. Hard-wheat flours contain more gluten and thus are better for bread than is soft-wheat flour, which is better for pastries. Other grains have insufficient gluten by themselves to create a light loaf of bread. A product called Vital Wheat Gluten, which is powdered pure gluten derived from flour after the starch has been washed away, can be used but only in very small quantities, to strengthen weaker flours. This product, which is not technically a flour, should not be confused with what is sometimes called high-gluten flour, a term that simply means bread flour. See, Buy Our Bread, We Knead the Dough.