Buying flour for pizza

Short answer

Buy for strength and oven, not for the word '00'. Protein percentage (and, on Italian flours, the W rating) tells you how much gluten strength and fermentation tolerance to expect. '00' is an Italian legal grade of refinement — low ash, little bran — not a strength rating. Unmalted 00 flours suit very hot, short bakes where browning comes easily; in a domestic oven a bread flour, often malted, usually browns better and is a perfectly sound choice.

Strength: protein percentage and W

Protein percentage on the pack is the most widely available guide to strength. Pizza flours commonly sit somewhere around 11–14% protein; higher protein usually means more gluten, a dough that can take more water and a longer ferment, and a chewier result. All-purpose flour tends to sit lower, bread flour in the middle and high-gluten flour at the top of that range. The flour profiles for type 00, bread, all-purpose and high-gluten flour give typical ranges.

Italian mills often add a W value, a measure of dough strength from a laboratory test (the alveograph) that is an Italian trade convention rather than a legal requirement. Higher W generally signals a flour meant for longer or colder fermentation and higher hydration; lower W suits short, same-day doughs. W figures are useful for comparing flours from the same mill, but different mills test and round differently, and there is no exact conversion between W and protein percentage.

Protein alone does not predict everything: two flours at the same percentage can behave differently depending on the wheat and milling. Treat the number as a starting point and expect to adjust hydration when you change flour.

What '00' does and does not mean

Under Italian law (DPR 187/2001) soft-wheat flour is graded 00, 0, 1, 2 and integrale by how refined it is. Type 00 has the lowest permitted ash content — a proxy for how much bran and outer grain remains — with a legal protein floor of 9%, which is low for pizza. So '00' tells you the flour is white and highly refined; it does not tell you whether it is strong, weak, finely ground or suitable for pizza. That depends on the specific flour.

Many flours sold for Neapolitan pizza are 00, unmalted and of moderate-to-high strength, because they were developed for very hot ovens and short bakes where the crust browns easily without help. In a domestic oven, where bakes are longer and cooler, the same flour can bake out pale and dry. That is the core of the type 00 versus bread flour comparison: the oven, more than the country of origin, decides which is easier to use well.

'Made in Italy' on a flour bag generally refers to where the flour was milled, not necessarily where the wheat was grown; Italian mills commonly blend imported wheat. Neither origin tells you much about performance on its own.

Additives: malt, bleaching and bromate

Malted flour contains a small amount of malted barley flour (US federal standards allow up to 0.75%) that supplies enzymes which break some starch down into sugars. More available sugar means more browning, which is useful in a home oven and can lead to over-browning in a very hot pizza oven. Many US bread and all-purpose flours are malted; many Italian 00 flours are not. Check the ingredients list for 'malted barley flour' or similar.

Bleached flour has been treated to whiten it and, in the US, must say 'bleached' on the label. Bleaching is generally considered unnecessary for pizza dough, and many bakers prefer unbleached flour, though the practical difference in a pizza is usually modest. Bromated flour contains potassium bromate, a dough strengthener permitted in the US at up to 50 parts per million; it is restricted or not permitted in a number of other jurisdictions, and rules change, so check the current position where you live. Unbromated flour makes perfectly good pizza.

Wholemeal and other fractions

Italian types 1 and 2, and wholemeal (integrale) flours, keep more bran and germ. They bring more flavour and colour and absorb more water, but bran cuts through gluten, so doughs are usually weaker and denser. A common approach is to replace a modest share — often 10–30% — of a strong white flour, raise hydration a little and expect a shorter, less airy rim. Semola rimacinata (re-milled durum) and rye blends behave differently again and have their own flour profiles.

What to look for

• Protein percentage

  The most widely printed guide to gluten strength, fermentation tolerance and how much water the dough can take.

  Check: The nutrition panel (protein per 100 g). Around 11–13% suits most home pizza; higher suits long ferments and chewy New York-style crusts; lower is fine for short, same-day doughs.

• W rating (Italian flours)

  A more direct strength figure than protein, indicating how long and cold a fermentation the flour is meant for.

  Check: The bag or the mill's specification sheet. Compare W values within one mill's range; treat cross-mill comparisons loosely.

• Malted or unmalted

  Malt adds enzymes that raise available sugars and browning — helpful in cooler domestic ovens, sometimes too much in very hot pizza ovens.

  Check: The ingredients list for malted barley flour. In a home oven, prefer malted or add a little sugar or malt; in a very hot oven, unmalted is usually easier.

• Bleached or bromated

  Additives that whiten or strengthen flour; not needed for good pizza and treated differently by regulators in different places.

  Check: The label for 'bleached' or 'bromated' and the ingredients list for potassium bromate. Unbleached, unbromated flour is the simplest choice.

• Wholemeal share

  Bran and germ add flavour and colour but weaken gluten and absorb more water.

  Check: Whether the flour is white, type 1 or 2, or wholemeal. Blend wholemeal into a strong white flour rather than using it alone for an open crumb.

Sold harder than it matters

• The '00' designation. '00' is a refinement (ash) grade, not a strength or quality rating, and its legal protein floor is low. Many 00 flours are designed for very hot ovens and can bake pale in a domestic oven, where a good bread flour often does better.

PizzaHQ does not test, rank or recommend flour brands, and takes no payment from mills. This guide explains what label specifications mean so you can compare any flour available to you; typical ranges come from the flour profiles and the sources cited, not from products PizzaHQ has baked.

Common misconceptions

“00 flour is the strongest, best flour for pizza.”

'00' describes how refined the flour is, not how strong. Strength is shown by protein and W, and the best flour depends on the oven and fermentation.

“You need Italian flour to make good pizza.”

Origin matters less than specification. A bread flour with suitable protein — often malted — is a sound choice for most home ovens and for many American and pan styles.

“Higher protein is always better.”

Higher protein suits long ferments and chewy crusts but can make a short-fermented dough tough and springy. Match strength to the schedule and style.

What this page cannot tell you

Labels vary by country: W values are not printed everywhere, protein may be declared on different moisture bases, and malting is not always obvious from the name. This page gives general ranges, not a recommended product, and PizzaHQ has not baked or measured any flour. Regulations on bleaching and bromate change; check current local rules.

Related

Evidence

• Decreto del Presidente della Repubblica 9 febbraio 2001, n. 187 — Regolamento per la revisione della normativa sulla produzione e commercializzazione di sfarinati e paste alimentari — Italian Republic (consolidated text via FAO FAOLEX)
• Are You Falling for These 00 Flour Misconceptions? — PMQ Pizza Magazine
• Molino Caputo — technical flour specifications — Molino Caputo
• King Arthur Baking — flour and pizza dough technical guidance — King Arthur Baking Company
• 21 CFR 137.105 — Flour (standard of identity) — US Food and Drug Administration (via Cornell Legal Information Institute)
• 21 CFR 137.155 — Bromated flour — US Food and Drug Administration (via Cornell Legal Information Institute)