Making doughballs (dumplings) with strong brown flour and shredded suet
In Scotland (and other parts of the British Isles) when making "mince and tatties" (cooked ground beef accompanied with boiled potatoes) it's not uncommon to cook doughballs, or dumplings in the mince near the end of the cooking process.
Normally I'd do this with self-raising white flour, shredded suet (using a product branded as Atora), water and a pinch of salt. However due to supply chain problems these days all I could get was strong brown flour and suet. What do I need to add to the mix that would give me the "self-raising" action? I'm thinking baking powder, but I don't know how much to add per 100g of brown flour to create "self-raising brown flour".
Any guidance would be appreciated.
Best Answer
In the UK self-raising flour doesn't have salt in it, SR flour is just fine plain flour with baking powder in it. In the UK to make a substitution you'd use 150g plain flour plus 2 tsp baking powder mixed in, 100g would be 1 1/3 tsp. In the US most SR flour has salt in it for some reason, so for completeness you would use all-purpose flour plus 2 tsp baking powder plus 1/2 tsp of salt.
Strong brown flour (whole wheat bread flour) isn't ideal for your doughballs as it has a lot of gluten, and the flour is courser, but it should work okay as long as you:
- Add a small amount of water to help bind the dough if they don't stick well
- Work the dough as little as possible. SR flour is generally lower in gluten, strong flour is high in gluten, if you work the gluten in the dough it may make your balls stretchy rather. The fat should help to minimize that, but it still helps to stop as soon as the mix is combined
- Cook the doughballs longer. Bread flour is courser so may need more time to cook. They may absorb a bit more water than SR flour as well, so be prepared to top up the moisture if you are cooking them in a stew
Pictures about "Making doughballs (dumplings) with strong brown flour and shredded suet"
Can I use strong flour for dumplings?
The best flour for dumplings When it comes to choosing the right flour, opt for '00' or very strong bread flour, which both have a high protein content (over 14g per 100g is best). Higher protein levels produce the higher volume of gluten needed to achieve elasticity and chew in the dough.How do you make dumplings with suet and flour?
How to make suet dumplingsIs suet the same as dumpling mix?
Dumplings are traditionally made with a mixture of flour and suet, but can be flavoured with a huge range of herbs, spices and other additions to suit the dish. Suet is used as the fat of choice for dumplings, as it traps air as it melts and therefore creates the perfect light and fluffy texture.How to make Suet Dumplings for Beef stew
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Mikhail Nilov, Mikhail Nilov, Mikhail Nilov, Mikhail Nilov