Characteristics and types of teff flour. Energy value and prevailing nutrients, benefits and harms to the body. Culinary application, popularity in the world market.
Teff flour (or teffa) is a gluten-free food powder made by grinding pseudo-grain crops grown in Ethiopia, the United States and Australia. The second name of the cereal is Abyssinian millet or Abyssinian teething. Since two types of agricultural crops are cultivated - white and red (brown), the grinding is produced in two types. White has a delicate taste with a slight sourness; brown has an earthy aftertaste with a rich shade of chocolate and nut. Whatever sort of cereal is grown, the processing is carried out according to a single technology. Since the grains are small and light, the shell is not removed and the product can be considered whole grain.
How is teff flour made?
Harvesting was not fully automated. This is due to the special growing conditions - cultivation in the highlands. White teff grows at an altitude of 1700-2000 m above sea level, red and mixed teff - above 2500 m.
The cereal is mowed before budding, so that dry light seeds do not fall out of the loose panicle-inflorescence. For this, manual labor is used. It is impractical to use the header - the ear height does not reach 0.6 m, and stones that break knives can come across on the soil surface. The first crop is harvested 45-50 days after sowing, the second and third - with a frequency of 30-35 days.
The rolls are raked and threshed by hand, separating the dried ears. Then the grain is poured into an elevator. Disinfection is carried out before shipment. Then the seeds go to a cleaning device with built-in traps that remove organic compounds and metal particles. Next, the cleaned grain is washed, dried - structures have already been mounted, in which a directed stream of hot air is used to remove moisture.
For the manufacture of teff cereals, such processing is sufficient, but if the final product is flour, then the heat treatment is carried out in 2 stages. The intermediate raw materials are dried and then supplied to a roller mill, where they are brought to the desired consistency. Control over the quality and structure of grinding is carried out by sieving through sieves with holes of different sizes.
You won't be able to buy teff flour in a store - it is ordered through online stores. Cost in Russia - from 300 rubles. for 200 g, in Ukraine - from 150 UAH. White grinding is more expensive, red is cheaper. The price depends on the country of manufacture: the lowest is from Ethiopia, the most expensive is from the USA. But do not be afraid to purchase a cheap product - at present, a thorough sanitary control is being carried out over the manufacture.
If possible, it is better to do the preparation of teff flour on your own. After opening the package, the original taste disappears already on the 3rd day. To enjoy it, you need to use all the products at once, and this is not always possible. Teff grits have a longer shelf life. Therefore, to enjoy baked goods with a chocolate-nut flavor, it is better to grind as much as required by the recipe.
How to make teff flour
- The grain does not need to be washed. It is quite clean, free of impurities and contaminants.
- To improve the taste, the cereals are fried. It is better to bake a large batch in the oven, a small batch in a dry frying pan, stirring constantly until the color becomes more intense and a nutty smell appears. This takes 3-5 minutes.
- It is difficult to obtain the desired consistency in a food processor, the seed sizes are 100 times smaller than wheat. It is best to use a coffee grinder. After grinding the coffee, it should be thoroughly washed and dried.
- After grinding, the powder is sieved several times to saturate with oxygen. It is better to grind large particles again.
At home, teff flour is prepared, as well as from other small seeds - amaranth or sorghum. But for Ethiopian housewives, the process is longer. They thresh the panicle inflorescences by hand, striking hard against a white blanket to spill out the seeds, then pick out the remains of grass and dirt. Dry in the sun and grind into powder. They have to do this work every day - there are no storage conditions.
