What Is 00 Flour? (+ How to Use It)

If you’ve ever made pizza dough, chances are you’ve asked, “What is 00 flour?”

And luckily, the answer is simple: it’s a type of flour ground down to as fine as it’ll go.

Navigating the baking aisle has become increasingly complex.

After all, there are a ton of different types of flour, including whole wheat, bread, cake, coconut, and even cricket flour!

Among the multitudes, you might discover 00 flour. 

This powdery substance is not gluten-free. Instead, it’s the key to creating crispy pizza crusts and al dente pasta.

Intrigued? Keep up with the times and read on to learn more about 00 flour!

What Is 00 Flour?

Double zero flour, or doppio zero, is an especially fine Italian flour used to make pizza dough and pasta.

In Italy, flour is graded based on how fine it’s milled:

• Grade 2: The highest grade, it’s very coarse flour with a high bran content. It’s usually used for rustic bread and baked goods.

• Grade 1: Medium-coarse flour with some bran. It’s often used in hearty bread and pasta recipes.

• Grade 0: A versatile, all-purpose flour with a medium grind and low bran content. It’s what the Italians use for a wide range of baked goods.

• Grade 00: The most finely ground flour. It’s very soft with minimal bran, so it’s ideal for homemade pizza dough, pasta, and pastries.

00 flour goes through the mill numerous times until it achieves its signature consistency. Think baby powder.

There are two main types of flour. And while they have the same level of fineness, the difference is gluten content:

• 00 Pasta Flour – more gluten

• 00 Pizza Flour – less gluten 

To clarify, the number “00” does not represent the flour’s gluten content. Double zero flour is NOT gluten-free flour.

It may be confusing because, in the USA, flour is graded according to gluten content.

So remember, 00 flour is Italian flour, not American flour. 

Why Use 00 Flour? 

00 flour creates delicate, elastic doughs that won’t rip when rolled thin. It’s perfect for making thin, crisp pizza crusts.

You’ll understand the difference more if you’ve tried making thin crust using all-purpose flour.

All-purpose flour dough tears easily.

00 flour is actually the gold standard for Italy’s Neapolitan pizza. In short, it’s one of the things that makes Italian pizza better than any!

00 Flour vs. All-Purpose Flour (What’s the Difference?) 

So if 00 flour is a great all-purpose flour, how is it different from the all-purpose flour we all know?

Let’s take a closer look at what set them apart.

Type of Wheat

00 flour is made from soft, durum wheat. In contrast, all-purpose flour is made from a combination of soft and hard wheat.

This wheat combination creates stretchier gluten strands. This, in turn, creates a chewy pizza crust instead of a crispy one.

Amount of Protein

The amount of protein in flour dictates how much gluten it can produce. 

• All-purpose flour’s protein content ranges from 10 to 12%. This makes it ideal for bread and baked goods.

• 00 flour has a higher protein level of 12 to 13%. It’s ideal for dense yet light and stretchy doughs.

Texture

The finer the flour, the quicker it absorbs water. This results in tender pasta and pizza dough with just the right amount of give.

It’s why some recipes tell you to let the batter or dough rest – so the regular all-purpose flour can absorb the liquid to make it more tender.

How to Cook With 00 Flour 

00 flour is best used to make thin-crust pizza. In fact, 00 flour is the crucial ingredient in the iconic Neapolitan pizza.

It contains more gluten, which makes it more elastic. So it can handle stretching without tearing. 

And when I say stretching, I mean paper-thin stretching! This means it’s also great for making pasta.

Lastly, when using 00 flour in place of other flour, remember that it absorbs more water. So you’ll need to use less water than the recipe calls for.

Where to Buy 00 Flour 

Check your local grocery or supermarket. Double zero flour will be in the baking section or the international aisle.

You can also check out Italian markets. They’ll be labeled as follows:

• Pizza flour
• Double zero flour
• Tipo 00
• 00 type

If you can’t find it anywhere else, there’s always the world wide web. Amazon would be a good place to start.

How to Store 00 Flour 

Store 00 flour as you would any kind of flour.

Place it in an airtight container and store it in a cool place. It’ll stay fresh for up to 6 to 8 months.

00 flour Substitutes 

00 flour is pretty special, so it’s hard to find a good alternative for it. 

If you’re not too particular about the texture of your pizza dough, though, you’ve got options. 

Any white flour with a similar protein content (12%) will do. Bread flour is also a good alternative, as it has a protein content of 11 to 13%. 

Just don’t expect too much. Your pizza dough will be chewy and not as crispy. 

Cake flour and pastry flour aren’t good alternatives. Their protein content is much lower than 00 flour.