Atta (flour) explained

Atta flour
Country:	Indian subcontinent
Region:	South Asia

Atta is a type of wheat flour, originated from the Indian subcontinent, used to make local flatbreads.^[1]

It is the most widespread flour in the Indian subcontinent.^[2]

Properties

Whole common wheat (Triticum aestivum) is generally used to make atta; it has a high gluten content, which provides elasticity, so the dough made out of atta flour is strong and can be rolled into thin sheets.^{[3] [4]}

The word "whole" is used to describe atta as it includes every component of the grain, meaning the bran, germ and the endosperm.

Atta was traditionally ground in the home on a stone chakki mill.^[5] This is useful when using a tandoor, where the flatbread is stuck to the inside of the oven, and also makes chapatis softer as the dough absorbs more water. Atta is also produced in industrial flour mills.^[6]

See also

• Maida flour

Further reading

• Reddy . J. . Weinmann . S. . Heine . D. . Conde-Petit . B.. A new standard for the industrial production of high quality Atta flour . Quality Assurance and Safety of Crops & Foods . 8 August 2012 . 4 . 3 . 151 . 10.1111/j.1757-837X.2012.00160.x .

Notes and References

1. Web site: Atta . Bakerpedia . 10 June 2015 . 17 August 2018.
2. Web site: Mollenhauer . Martina . Popper . Lutz . From flatbread to sandwich loaf . World-Grain.com . 17 August 2018 . 4 November 2017.
3. Web site: Atta (Indian Whole Wheat Flour) . food-india.com . February 24, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120224100315/http://www.food-india.com/ingredients/i026_i050/i048.htm.
4. Characterisation of Indian wheat varieties for chapatti (flat bread) quality . Journal of the Saudi Society of Agricultural Sciences . 2019 . 10.1016/j.jssas.2017.02.005 . Panghal . Anil . Chhikara . Navnidhi . Khatkar . B.S. . 18 . 107–111 . 126134405 . free .
5. Sakhare . Suresh D. . Inamdar . Aashitosh . January 2014 . Indian Atta (whole wheat flour) industry: History and recent trends . Agro Food Industry Hi Tech . 25 . 1 . 66–69 . ResearchGate.
6. Web site: Ajansı . Dijital Reklam . May 8, 2014 . "The future of flour industry is bright in Pakistan" . 2023-04-12 . millermagazine.com . en.