Trader Joe's certainly caused quite a hubbub when they decided to stop carrying King Arthur Flour and switch over to a store brand. We saw the new Trader Joe's all-purpose flour on the shelves for the first time this past weekend and picked up a bag. Time to put it to the test!
Reading the packaging information, we have to say that this flour looks promising. The flour is unbleached, which we prefer. Nothing too scary on the ingredient list.
We were surprised to notice that this flour is listed as having four grams of protein per 1/4 cup (about 13.3%), which actually puts it above King Arthur Flour in terms of protein content (which has a protein content of about 3g per 1/4 cup or 11.7%). Protein content tells you a bit about how easily you'll form gluten using this flour, and four grams in this flour means that it will form gluten very easily indeed. Since high-protein bread flour is typically between 4.5 and 6 grams of protein, this is definitely at the upper end of the range for what can be considered all-purpose.
For this first test run, we decided to make a batch of no-knead bread following the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes technique. Since there's no kneading involved, we sometimes have trouble getting enough gluten to really set the crumb of this bread if we use a lower-protein flour like Gold Medal. King Arthur has served us well in the past.
The initial mixing and rising went smoothly. The flour became quickly hydrated and the consistency of the dough as we mixed it felt normal. We baked one loaf right away and stored the rest of the dough in the refrigerator to bake another day.
The loaf we baked right away turned out very well. The crust set up beautifully with an even golden-brown color. The interior crumb was fully set, even in the middle (which has a tendency to sag with this no-knead bread and then tear when cut). The bread tasted mild and even slightly sweet. There were no off flavors that we could detect.
The second loaf, baked a few days later, was even better. The time in the refrigerator helped bring out more of that sweet flavor as enzymes broke the starches down into sugar, and the crumb was nicely tight.
All in all, we think this first test of the Trader Joe's flour was a success. We were happy with both loaves and think that this flour will be a good choice for breads in the future. We're curious to see how it does with quick breads, cookies, and other baked goods where a lot of gluten formation isn't quite as desirable. We'll let you know what we find!
Have you tried the new Trader Joe's all-purpose flour yet? What do you think?
Related: What's the Difference? Cake Flour, Pastry Flour, All-Purpose Flour, and Bread Flour
(Images: Emma Christensen for the Kitchn)
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I really like it! My roommate and I used the flour in this recipe for muffins (http://bit.ly/oFQc8) and it worked really well.
What does TJ's flour approximately go for? (Yes, I know it varies across the country) I'm just not satisfied with normal grocery store flour, and there's no bakeries nearby who will sell bulk!
Does TJ's carry the white whole wheat still (either their own brand or King Arthur)?
They weren't really subtle with that package design, were they?
The cashier at TJ's told me they are going to only sell TJ's brand stuff eventually. I was sad when I got an e-mail from King Arthur announcing that TJ's was no longer carrying their flour--I hated that this flour was one of the first name brand things to go (at least that I noticed!). I have been a loyal King Arthur customer, ordering a variety of flours a couple times a year, but normally buying some at TJ's. Not sure what I'll do now about regular flour purchases.
Could that bag look *more* like a KAF rip-off?
Still, tho, good to hear that it's a good product. Flour is one of the few pantry staples I buy from the Stop N' Shop (KAF all the way!) rather than the TJ's, but I see a test run of this in my future.
Thanks for the review. TJ always had the best price on KAF and I sorely miss it. I haven't brought myself to pay more for it at Fred Meyers or QFC. I will try the TJ product.
I was heartbroken when the checkout girl told me the bad news. I've been dragging myself to Whole Foods to get the King Arthur. I'm looking forward to the subsequent tests of this in tarts, cookies etc since I make those a lot more often than I make bread. I really need to not go to Whole Foods so often because I always end up getting more than I intended.
I'm sad with the direction TJ's is going. I liked being able to find somewhat off-beat brands there. now they only want TJ's stuff. (the same thing happened with delicious double rainbow ice cream.)
the sad thing is, it often happens like this: they form contracts with small companies, initially paying them well and working with them contructively, the small companies grow but are reliant on TJ's, then TJ's demands that they provide products at the fraction of the price with their brand name on it. my employer was approached by TJ's to outsource a product and was treated horribly: they basically tried to bully and threaten him into supplying their local stores. disappointing behavior.
why, joe, why?!
Wow, bewarethebaobabs, is TJ's the new Walmart?
Whole Foods often puts the KA AP flour on sale, making it cheaper than buying it at TJ's anyway.
Say what you want about "rip-off" packaging, I like it. For instance, at Target, it's much easier to compare the off brands when they look like the name brands. For my peripatetic brain, it's much easier. :)
Good to hear that it works well; but personally, I'm devoted to KA.
http://www.abreadaday.com
I have to second bewarethebaobab's comment. I work for a company that used to be a vendor of TJ's. They would demand a very drawn out and might I add, expensive, developmental process only to drop items after one or two deliveries. And yes, they often decided to change the item into their own private TJ label to increase profits.
We always rolled our eyes at their Lowest Prices claim advertised in their Fearless Flyer. We charged them a lot and in turn, their mark up to the consumer was outrageous. Far higher than any other stores we sold to. It was up there with high end boutique grocery stores such as Gelsons and Bristol Farms. Granted not *all* of their items are overpriced, only the ones that aren't commodities and can't be compared.
In the end we dropped them as a customer because it was too difficult to meet their demands.
ha, my employer actually did compare them to walmart (granted, he's a bit bitter, but still).
the lower part was that when they couldn't find a local supplier (the word was spread and nobody would work with them), they shipped in the product from across the country and claimed in their advertising that it was the only was it was 'authentic'.
Bewarethebaobabs: That is hilarious!! Ironically, in spite of Walmart's horrific reputation and TJ's angelic one with the public, it's been our experience that WalMart has been far fairer and more reasonable to us (a small, owner-operated company) than Trader Joe's ever was.
Wow. Lot's of TJ's haters. Can't really hate, as they are my employer. To answer a previous question, yes, there is still white whole wheat and the apf at Trader Joe's.
I am not surprised to read these accounts of companies being frustrated with Joe's policies- we do often discontinue products too hastily before they are really given a chance to take off. It can be a bummer for all involved.
The flour seems all well and good (tasty, nice gluten development, but still made a damn fine cupcake)
what really surprised me is the new selection of flours, yet TJs STILL does not carry yeast, neither their own brand nor any other.
Yeast is available only during the winter season at Trader Joes. I usually buy extra for the rest of the year. Someone in our corporate office seems to think people only bake in the winter. No pie crusts in the summer? That's just stupid.
i work there too! i hate how they always discontinue everything that's good and we seem to be moving toward products with tons of packaging (but to be fair we are lessening our packaging on other foods as well)
i wish i could afford all of the farmers market / european model style shops ...