When choosing a flour, a bread baker will look at not only the protein content but also the protein quality. In addition, the bread baker looks at ash content and the flour’s ability to form gluten. A hard flour will form an excellent-quality, elastic gluten that will produce an equally excellent baked bread. At the other extreme, a soft flour will produce a flabby dough that will produce a flat, wet baked bread. The harder flour, with the higher proportion of protein, is generally desired for superb bread making.