I tested Caputo gluten free flour in my gluten free recipes. The results are sometimes amazing, sometimes disappointing.
I have a lot of experience with gluten free flour blends, but so far I have only recommended 3 blends for my recipes: Better Batter, Cup4Cup, and now my own blend called Nicole’s Best Multipurpose Gluten Free Flour. I have tested my gluten free recipes extensively with these blends, and they will work anywhere a recipe calls for an all purpose gluten free flour blend as an ingredient.
I recommend against most other blends on the market for being unbalanced, containing gritty rice flour, or simply of inconsistent quality. Any of these qualities mean that they won’t work in my recipes.
When you leave a comment on the blog saying that you “followed the recipe to a T” and it didn’t work, it’s almost always an issue with the flour blend you’ve chosen.
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Why review this flour blend?
I’ve begun to seen an increase in the number of comments referring to the gluten free Caputo flour. Some readers were asking if it would work in one of my recipes. Others were stating that they had used it and either did, or didn’t, like their results.
I had been aware of the Caputo Fioreglut gluten free flour blend for some time. But I hadn’t tested it because it contains psyllium husk, a gluten free baking ingredient that I generally don’t like.
There’s also an Italian restaurant near my home that makes incredible gluten free pizza in a dedicated gf pizza oven. I tried it for the first time in 2023, and I really enjoyed it.
For these reasons, I decided to see for myself how well this flour blend performed in my recipes. I have only tested the flour blend in 3 types of recipes: gf pizza, gf sandwich bread, and gf cookies. These are my results!
What’s special about gluten free Caputo flour?
Caputo Fioreglut is unique because it contains wheat starch as its first, and most dominant ingredient. I had seen increasing claims on social media and from readers that this blend makes the best gluten free pizza and bread that people have ever had.
Is this a sponsored review of the flour?
No! I purchased the flour to test with my own money. Since I do so few sponsored posts and haven’t done a single one in years, companies never even approach me any more.
The link below to purchase this blend from Amazon.com is an affiliate link. I encourage you to shop around for the deal that is best for you.
Important facts about the blend
What are the ingredients?
These are the ingredients listed on the package of flour that I purchased. All facts are according to the company:
- gluten free wheat starch (This meets FDA requirements for Gluten-Free Foods)
- dextrose
- maize starch
- buckwheat flour
- rice starch
- psyllium seed fibre
- thickener: guar;
- flavoring
The FDA requirements for gluten free food labeling that the company is referring to “define the term “gluten-free” for voluntary use in the labeling of foods.” (Source)
The final rule states specifically that products that contain wheat starch as an ingredient and states, in part:
The final rule defines the term “gluten-free” to mean that the food bearing the claim does not contain … an ingredient that is derived from a gluten-containing grain and that has been processed to remove gluten (e.g., wheat starch), if the use of that ingredient results in the presence of 20 parts per million (ppm) or more gluten in the food (i.e., 20 milligrams (mg) or more gluten per kilogram (kg) of food)
78 Federal Register 47154
Should I add xanthan gum or guar gum to this blend?
No! This blend already has psyllium husk and guar gum as binders. Plus, it’s very sticky and somewhat stiff. Those
Is Caputo gluten free flour really gluten-free?
Yes, Caputo gluten free flour is properly labeled gluten free as defined by the United States FDA. However, the presence of wheat starch as the most plentiful ingredient in the mix may make you uncomfortable, and I respect that.
Is wheat starch safe to eat for celiacs?
Yes, wheat starch that has been properly tested for being free of gluten is gluten free. However, like all decisions about your diet, you must make a personal decision about whether it has a place in your life. This is not medical advice, as I’m not a doctor and would never pretend to give that sort of advice.
It seems like a similar decision to deciding whether oats are safely gluten free, or whether Cheerios are gluten free.
How does the blend perform in baking and taste?
I encourage you toward or against any particular blend, even my own blend, to ensure that you have success when you use my recipes. Specialized gluten free ingredients like a flour blend are very expensive, and I want you to have success in baking the first time, and every time.
The bottom line: Caputo gf is good for yeast breads
The Caputo gluten free flour blend performs very well in yeast-risen baked goods like gluten free pizza and bread. I don’t like its performance at all in cookies, and although I haven’t tested this, I believe it would make cake with a stiff, unpleasant crumb.
The rise in yeast-risen baked goods is better than anything else I have tried. The rise is truly excellent, which you can see in the photos of bread here on this page.
The crumb structure looks perfect, the texture of the pizza is crispy outside and well-risen inside. However, the bread that I baked with Caputo Fioreglut tasted somewhat dry, and certainly more dry than what I’ve made with my other recommended gluten free flour blends. It’s not enough of a problem to make me not want to use this flour again, though!
How to use Caputo flour in gluten free pizza
I first made my recipe for NY-style gluten free pizza, as written. That pizza has an 84% hydration ratio, and the pizza bends and folds when made with my regular recommended flour blend.
When I made the same recipe using Caputo, the pizza was good, but did not bend. I increased the hydration ratio to 93% by increasing the water, and the pizza bent and folded well. You’ll find my Caputo Fioreglut pizza recipe on the blog.
Results of Caputo in gluten free bread
I made my recipe for gluten free bread without any changes. You can see the results in the photos on this page.
The rise was truly amazing, and the loaf maintained its shape perfectly as it cooled. However, the mouthfeel was a bit drier in my throat than normal. It felt moist to the touch, but felt somewhat drier when I swallowed it.
It’s rare that yeast bread will rise so well, and maintain its shape after baking, but without also feeling moist in your mouth. The wheat starch, in particular, is able to trap so much of the carbon dioxide released by the yeast. But the starchiness of the blend means it absorbs a ton of water.
How versatile is this blend?
This blend is not very versatile, even though the bag states that it’s “gluten free flour for all your baking needs.” So far, I’m only willing to recommend that you use it in pizza and breads.
I haven’t tried it in gluten free pasta, but I believe it would work well in my recipe in place of both the all purpose gluten free flour blend and the Expandex modified tapioca starch. For a single batch, that would be 325 grams of gf Caputo.
I don’t have a formula for how to use it in my recipes without any changes, since it works better in some recipes, and worse in others. I haven’t yet tried it in shaped breads, only the batter-style gluten free breads.
This blend most definitely cannot be used in place of traditional flour in a “regular” non-gf recipe. It absorbs a lot of moisture, even more than usual for gf flour blends, so each recipe must be considered individually.
Where to buy Caputo gluten free flour in the U.S.
I purchased gluten free Caputo on Amazon.com. That’s an affiliate link to the precise product I purchased. As of this writing, the price on Amazon Prime is $1.98 per ounce.
You can also purchase the flour on the Caputo website, but the shipping costs make Amazon a better value, particularly if you have a subscription to Amazon Prime.
There are other online retailers that also offer this flour blend for sale in the U.S., but the shipping costs add up to a much higher price than Amazon Prime. Please do shop around for the best value!
How does the price of Caputo compare to Better Batter or Nicole’s Best?
As of this writing, the cost of a 5 pound bag of Better Batter’s original blend on Amazon Prime is $1.96 per ounce. That’s 2¢ less than Caputo as described above. Both of these purchases assume Amazon Prime membership. The price of Nicole’s Best right now is $1.91 an ounce, as shipped.
Should you try Caputo gluten free flour?
Yes—but only if you’re willing to experiment with adding more moisture to some of my bread recipes, or to just use the blend to make my gluten free sandwich bread and this Caputo Fioreglut pizza recipe.
If you’re looking for an all purpose gluten free flour blend, this isn’t it. And, of course, if you’re allergic to wheat or any of the other ingredients in the blend, please don’t purchase this flour.
