Durum wheat semolina 7Comments
One of the key ingredients of the Puglia cuisine is semolina from durum wheat. In Italian, semolina translates into “semola di grano duro”.
Semolina can only be made from durum wheat and is very yellow in color. It is completely different from the white flour (farina Bianca) which comes from softer wheats.
Durum wheat semolina is much richer in protein and healthier because slower to be digested.
Puglia is a big producer of durum wheat. In fact Puglia is also known as the “Granaio d’Italia”, Granary of Italy. If you go to the Northern part of Puglia, the so-called Tavoliere di Puglia, you will be amazed by the beautiful yellow grain fields.
In Puglia all types of fresh handmade pasta, dry pasta, bread and even some cakes are made of durum wheat semolina. For pasta nothing else is used but durum wheat semolina and water. Our personal experience is that kneading the pasta dough made of durum wheat semolina is much easier than with other kinds of flour. It just gives you the perfect consistency right away and the resulting taste is unique!
All bread made in the Altamura (read this interesting article The Bread Is Famously Good, but It Killed McDonald’s ), Laterza and Matera areas, is made of durum wheat semolina as well, which results in a more yellow bread. The interesting thing about bread made of durum wheat semolina is that it can last for many days or even a week, if kept in a dry environment and in a paper bag (we actually think it is much better after two or three days). No preservatives are added to this bread!
Very impressive results are also reached when semolina is used to bake cakes or tarts. Not only the color is very warm and beautiful, but also the taste is much richer.
thankyou cinzia and marika……i used mangoes because they are in season right now…………..o was thinking of making it with apricots today……i made apricot jam today in microwave and will make the loaf using the half done jam….will post it soon.
i think you can go with your imagination n instinct……..it can’t go wrong…the fruit keeps the loaf moist n flavorful.
Grazie mille! I will take your advice and I look forward to further posts!
Hello Mattie, we are pleased to read that our blog is helpful to understand our cuisine. To answer your question, please consider that Altamura bread is a DOP product. This means that in order to be called Altamura bread specific rules must be followed during the preparation and specific flours must be used (it is equal to what happens for DOC wines!). Altamura bread can only be made using the “Lievito Madre” method (Sourdough or Mother Sponge)! Also to make Altamura bread you need to use durum wheat semolina produced and milled in the Altamura area. I never bought semolina at the GS supermarket …so I am not sure whether it is similar to the one I use. I go and get mine from Altamura. Hope this helps!
Hi Cinzia & Marika.I followed your blog from the foodie blogroll and I couldn't stop reading!I love your stories,recipes,and oh! all these lovely photos!Hope you wont mind but I'd love to bring over Foodista readers to your site, just add this little widget here to this post and it’s all set to go, Thanks! -Alisa@Foodista
Dear Debora, we are pleased you like our style of cooking. Please keep checking our blog as we have many recipes to share!
As an American living in Lecce your blog has helped answer a lot of my questions related to local cuisine. Thank you! I’ve been making ciabatte since arriving but I use mostly tipo 00 flour. Do you use a biga when making Altamura? And is the semolina different than that sold at di per di or GS?
I really like your style of cooking – and loved the article on McDonalds being beaten by a real baker and centuries of tradition.