It's 75% protein, and ordinary flour ranges from about 8 to 14 percent depending on whether it's soft or hard wheat. It IS vital wheat gluten (gluten isolated from flour) and that's the stuff you want if you want to boost the protein content of your regular flour. I did a quick google search, and found that vital wheat gluten is around 75-80% protein. So that is what you want.

When/why do you need it? It helps in gluten formation, which is what allows the gas bubbles to have stable walls and therefore helps the dough to rise. It's especially helpful if your whole wheat doughs aren't rising much.

I would imagine that the word 'flour' on the label is a descriptive one--i.e, it's finely powdered. No way you'd use that stuff as regular flour.

In oriental cuisine, gluten is used to make meatless protein items--seitan and lo ham chai (I think that's what they call it)

Oops, my error. Lo han chai is something different, but seitan IS made from wheat gluten.

Here is a link that might be useful: wheat gluten

OK so it appears that I have what I need. I wish the package didn't imply "flour" though, it makes it quite confusing for the novice! UGH! I really didn't think anything of it until I was reading The Bread Machine Lover's Cookbook and it specifically said not to use VWG flour. So I go and grab my package and low and behold it says flour so I'm like "dang I wasted all that money on something that isn't even the right thing" then I got my hopes up thinking that "well maybe that's why my bread doesn't rise in my bread machine". But NO!!! BOOHOO!

I'm still planning to make the Honey Whole Wheat bread recipe the cooking forum gals gave me but I just haven't gotten up the courage yet since all my disasters, so instead I started reading my book hoping for some answers and all I get are questions...HAHA!

Here is a link that might be useful: My Cookbook

Arley, I have that cookbook and I LOVE it! However, I think Ms. Hensperger is a little over obsessed with vital wheat gluten. Every single recipe in that cookbook calls for it, and yet I have made many nicely risen loaves in my bread machine without it. I wouldn't sweat it.

Sorry, my brain is worn out, I mean ArkansasGirl, not Arley! Not that Arley's post wasn't helpful, just that AG was the one with the "Bread Lovers" cookbook.

I discovered vital wheat gluten on this forum. I made bread for years without it, but I like the texture of bread made with VWG - much softer, less crumbly.

My favorite is the Honey Wheat bread, I make it every week. I use a teaspoon of VWG per cup of flour. I use the dough setting on the breadmaker, then shape and rise and bake.

Enjoy

Vital Wheat Gluten is one of those items that goes by several names, so we have every reason to be confused...

(Source: The Cook's Thesaurus - http://www.foodsubs.com/Flour.html#gluten)

gluten flour = instant gluten flour = pure gluten flour = vital wheat gluten Notes: This is flour with the starch and bran removed. Don't confuse it with bread flour = high-gluten flour, which is gluten-fortified flour, or with gluten = seitan, a meat analogue used in vegetarian dishes. Pure gluten flour is usually added to regular flour to turn it into bread flour, or it's used to make seitan. (end of information)

I agree with lpinkmountain, Beth Hensperger couldn't live without it in "The Bread Machine Lover's Cookbook", as well as the bread machine recipes in "The Pleasure of Whole-grain Breads". Adding too much VWG will make the bread tough, so more isn't necessarily better!

I only use VWG in a bread recipe if there is a large percentage of low-gluten or gluten-free flour in it. If the recipe calls for bread flour or all-purpose flour, there is more than enough gluten (protein) in those flours to make bread - especially if you use King Arthur All-Purpose or Robin Hood, which are higher in protein than National Brands (Pillsbury or Gold Medal).

I order Vital Wheat Gluten in #10 cans (3.5 lb.) from Honeyville Grain ($12.99 and shipping is $4.49 for your entire order), and keep at least 6 cans in storage. I use it for making seitan (aka wheat meat or gluten), which I use as a high-protein meat extender, and VWG is a key ingredient in my low-carb bread recipe (1/2 c.).

-Grainlady

What had me so confused is that on the book she says "if you see Vital Wheat Gluten flour, it is a different product than Vital Wheat Gluten. Do not confuse these two items." So you can imagine I was totally confused when I grabbed my bag and sure enough it says that it's VWG flour. So naturally I thought I had the wrong thing. I think that Bob's Red Mill needs to change the labelling...JMHO!

BTW thanks everyone!

I have the same cookbook. What you have is flour with Vital wheat gluten, not vital wheat gluten.

This is what I use. I get it at our regular old grocery store.

I also use Gold Medal bread flour with VWG. Then cut back a little on the amount of VWG or your bread will sink.

I also love the honey white bread and make it a couple of times a week.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vwg

Still confusing you, I'm afraid. I use the product in the link and the gold medal bread machine flour with VWG. Just cut back a little on the amount of VWG called for in Beth's recipe.

If you could find bread machine flour without VWG, this adjustment would not be necessary, but like your bread flour, I haven't found any without gluten.

AG, I've got a bag of the Bob's Red Mill Vital Wheat Gluten in my pantry right now. The term "flour" just refers to its fine powdered texture. And, yes, it's confusing. More so because all the references on the packaging and on the website call it simply vital wheat gluten. The package includes a bread recipe calling for only 2 Tbsp. of the vital wheat gluten. That's a sure clue that the product is NOT a combo of flour and VWG -- it's just straight VWG. Plus the description on the website says just a bit is needed for improving dough.

I've got Beth Hensberger's book too. She says using VWG helps strengthen the dough's structure when baking in a bread machine. I like many of her recipes but think she uses a bit too much yeast.

Here is a link that might be useful: Bob's VWG

I think it is a question of semantics. From what I see on the Web site, I think Shambo is absolutely right, especially since she uses that brand! They really should not be using the word "flour" on the packaging, but they do.

It does depend on the type of flour you use for your bread on how much gluten you will need. Apparently there are some special bread machine bread flours. I haven't seen them but that would present an additional conundrum. I use organic whole wheat bread flour that I get at the health food store, and King Arthur organic white bread flour that I get at ye olde grocery store. For a long time I couldn't find real whole wheat bread flour, and the labeling was confusing on that too, but the kind I get is the hard wheat kind, or so it says on the label. It gives me good results, that I know. It's also tricky when they add wheat gluten to low gluten flours to make them into "bread flour."

I'm gonna have to try that honey wheat now, sounds like one BF will like. Right now we are lovin' up the yogurt bread. That's one of my favorite recipes in Beth's book. You get the sourdough taste without the sourdough fuss. I make a lot of the recipes in there with half whole wheat flour even though the recipe doesn't call for it. I just like the taste and texture of whole wheat better. I add a little more liquid to compensate, but not much. With this week's yogurt bread I subbed one cup whole wheat bread flour for one of the white, and subbed oatmeal for 1/2 cup of the flour. It has been a great loaf, albeit not very pretty looking!

I have so many of those breads on my "to try" list, lol! Before my oven gave out I was just using the dough cycle and baking them in a small loaf pan in the oven. I don't like the big hole you get in the loaves when you use the bread machine to bake in. But it is a godsend right now with my oven being broken. We eat around the hole, lol!

I also find some of Beth's breads very yeasty-tasting. I'm wondering if that just goes with the territory of homeade bread, in particular the kind made in the bread machine.

Oh, and BTW, being able to find and buy real whole wheat PASTRY flour, has revolutionized my non-yeast baking. I get superior muffins and cakes using it, as opposed to the all-purpose whole wheat flour that was the main offering in the stores for so many years. I remember a time when I was happy they just started carrying whole wheat flour, let alone the different kinds. That's one modern trend I am happy about!

We don't have WW pastry flour or WW bread flour anywhere over where I live. I have gone to every store in the area!

I got a reply back from Bob's customer service and the rep says it's Vital Wheat Gluten. She says "Our Vital Wheat Gluten is almost pure gluten" and "sorry for the label confusion".

It would be nice if the cookbooks were to specify 'This recipe works best with a flour with a protein content of about 10 percent' or something like that. As grainlady noted, too much protein will make things tough (think bagels and pizza crust). Then you could easily (well, easily with the help of a calculator and a touch of ninth grade algebra) adjust the percentage of protein if needed.

arkansas girl-

You may be able to get what you need from the Ozark Natural Foods - 1554 N. College Ave., Fayetteville, AR : phone: 479.521.7558. I was part of their Food Co-Op when they delivered in this area, years ago.

Mill your own grains and you will be able to control the gluten levels for "pastry" flour, "bread" flour, and everything in between.

I mill low-gluten "cake" flour by using a 3:1 mixture of soft white wheat and oats OR spelt. This has an even lower level of protein/gluten than pastry flour (which I make with soft white wheat). Spelt is another good choice for baked goods where you don't want/need a lot of gluten development (quick breads, cakes, cookies).

For soft dinner rolls I mix 3:2 hard white winter (or spring) wheat with soft white wheat.

When you mill your own flour, you get 100% of the nutrition possible. Fresh IS best.... ;-)

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Why make your own fresh flour?

After reading everyone's comments I am still confused. So is it the same thing or not?

I've always used Hoosier Hill Farm VWG purchased from Amazon.

Sherrie Aguilar, the answer in this old posting is that there are indeed two different things, Vital Wheat Gluten (VWG), which you use by the spoonful to enhance the strength of your rise, and VWG Flour, which is a baking flour with VWG already added. I've never seen the latter. The confusion is in the label, where one maker is talking about enhanced flour, but another is calling powdered VWG "flour" because of its texture. If you're not sure what you have, do the checks the various posters in this thread, did. Or avoid the "flour" and get VWG you're sure of, and add your own to your baking flour. That gives you more control, anyway,

Red Mill makes Vital Wheat Gluten flour....that is really glutin to be added to AP flour. Check on the percentage of protein to see what you have...flour will be in the neighborhood of 10% protein.