Sunday, August 30, 2015

The quality of flour is not strained, but extruded. Grist and Toll Charcoal Wheat.

I have been tasting a lot of flour in the past year as part of my noodle soup quest. Some of it was difficult to find, some rather common. There is really no connection between cost and quality. I have also noticed that a lot of flour sold in supermarkets has gone stale, or never tasted like much of anything in the first place. Whole wheat in particular can be really nasty when stale. The best way to taste wheat is not in bread or pancakes because there are so many other ingredients. Try a noodle first and you will get what I'm talking about immediately.

This week's research involved side by side tastings. Mass produced wheat consistently rated lowest, no surprise. Once in a while there was a gorgeous batch I found somewhere odd. But if you want to taste really fresh whole wheat, very interesting strains, try Grist and Toll based in L.A. This charcoal wheat, I was told, will float my boat. And it sure did. This was extruded from the Italian hand powered bronze torchio into spaghetti about 6 or 7 feet in length. I tried it with nothing on it whatsoever, not even salt, lifted by hand and lowered into my mouth. This is pasta. But the rest awaits a really serious soup base, I'm thinking of the goat meat I have simmering on the stove now.

Goat Goulash with Home Made Paprika. Isn't the color gorgeous. Smells and tastes divine too.
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7 comments:

  1. JeremyAugust 30, 2015 at 3:47 PM

    Did you buy the flour locally?

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  2. Ken AlbalaAugust 31, 2015 at 4:25 AM

    Yup, Grist and Toll in LA. Almost local. Here's a fun interview with the miller. http://chscsite.org/linda-civitello-and-nan-kohler-main-grains-local-heirloom/

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  3. Deana SidneySeptember 8, 2015 at 6:30 PM

    How does the charcoal work in the flour??

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  4. Ken AlbalaOctober 15, 2015 at 9:33 AM

    That's just the color. Though there is a farina d'arso which is burnt. I bought some from Italy and it's absolutely disgusting.

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  5. Ken AlbalaOctober 15, 2015 at 9:33 AM

    Jeremy, yes, semi-local. It's from LA. They're happy to ship to Northern California. I'm pretty sure all the wheat is grown in state too. k

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  6. houOctober 16, 2015 at 2:56 AM

    I think the temperature got to about 200 degrees, not enough to burn them, though I was originally thinking of a farina di grano arso.
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  7. abeApril 21, 2017 at 12:58 PM

    You can also get Grist and Toll at Monsieur Marcel at the Farmers Market/Grove, which has later hours and closer to the west side. I bought it there and I found this blog while Googling "Charcoal Wheat" find out to see exactly what it is. I recommend checking out Grist and Toll's store/mill though because the owner is very helpful in explaining (I wouldn't have had to google it if I bought it there).

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