Wheat flour recipes are the base, the foundation of almost any cooking process. Bread, cookies, buns, pizza or cake layers, pies, gingerbread: here the main ingredient never changes. And if we're not talking about baked goods, what dishes can you make?
1) When you need thickeners. Gravies, in particular the famous béchamel sauce, omelets, cheese pancakes, soups… usually take very little — a tablespoon or two — yet a small portion of the powder creates just the right consistency.
2) When you need a breading. For pan-frying fish, vegetables, and meat products. You can make a batter, or simply dip a piece in flour and the crust will form just as well.
3) For the wrapper. To shape dumplings, vareniki, khinkali, manti, tortellini, and other boiled products with a filling inside, you have to knead a dough. The recipe is extremely simple: just add water and salt, and in rare cases an egg.
The one thing to remember is that ground wheat grain shouldn't be used in place of other grains. Corn, pea, chestnut, buckwheat, or rice flour has a different chemical makeup and a different taste — culinary experiments like that won't end in anything useful.
Read THIS ARTICLE about what kinds of wheat flour there are and how to choose the right one for specific recipes so your baking always turns out flawless.
