Where can I find Wondra?

[paulraphael]

It's a staple way down south, but I don't see it anywhere that I shop. Thoughts?

[Doodad]

Nowhere? Wow, that is even in the mainstream groceries down here.

[RWood]

I'm in CA, and I see it in most grocery stores.

[Tri2Cook]

They have a product here in Ontario that is exactly the same thing but goes by a different name. I can't remember the name off the top of my head but it would probably be different where you are anyway. Look for something in the flour area that has "instant" somewhere on the container and read the label, there may be something available from another company.

Edit: the one available where I live is Robin Hood Easy Blend Flour.

Edited October 20, 2010 by Tri2Cook (log)

[Fat Guy]

I haven't bought it in years but it was always a standard supermarket item in Manhattan. What do you need it for? I just use regular flour whenever a recipe calls for instant-blend flour, and I mix a little more carefully with a whisk or whatever.

[andiesenji]

You can search for a retailer by using the

General Mills Product Locator Page

I tried it for my street and zip code and got a page to select the size of the package and then 18 stores within a 20 mile radius.

[Tom Gengo]

Last place you look??????, Just teasing.

[janeer]

Pretty much anywhere. If you are looking in a regular market, maybe you are just missing it--it may be shelved closer to the cornstarch than the flour. Also, Asian markets.

[Porthos]

As I came into my local Walmart (Rancho Cucamongo, CA) this morning I saw a guy who had filled his cart with every available can of Wondra they had. I would suggest checking your local Walmart.

[Fat Guy]

I'm pretty sure we don't have any Wal-Marts in New York City. However as suggested I used the General Mills product locator and around here it's stocked by Food Emporium, Pathmark, Stop & Shop, Shoprite...pretty much all the major chain grocers.

[KennethT]

I'm in Manhattan and have no problems finding it - it's in the Food Emporium and Gristede's in the basement of my building/across the street...

[Fat Guy]

Just ran out to the local Food Emporium for a missing ingredient and there on the "baking needs" aisle was plenty of Wondra:

Although, for $3.19 you can get something like a metric ton of regular flour. So unless you have a Thanksgiving-gravy emergency, I'm not sure what the benefit is.

[KennethT]

Wondra flour is a great coating for pan-frying, aka saute, proteins. You sprinkle it on, and a super-thin layer adheres to the protein, the rest blows off. The finished product does not seem to have a flour coating. It also helps proteins not stick to the pan. This is a technique that was lauded by David Bouley a few years ago in one of his demonstration classes - he extolled the virtues of the wondra flour for like a half hour - and even sold it in the Bouley Market when they first opened (which was about the time of this class). He said in the restaurant Bouley (at that time) they used the wondra flour when the sauteed just about everything... he demonstrated using it when searing scallops.

[Pierogi]

Wondra flour is a great coating for pan-frying, aka saute, proteins. You sprinkle it on, and a super-thin layer adheres to the protein, the rest blows off. The finished product does not seem to have a flour coating. It also helps proteins not stick to the pan. This is a technique that was lauded by David Bouley a few years ago in one of his demonstration classes - he extolled the virtues of the wondra flour for like a half hour - and even sold it in the Bouley Market when they first opened (which was about the time of this class). He said in the restaurant Bouley (at that time) they used the wondra flour when the sauteed just about everything... he demonstrated using it when searing scallops.

Jacques Pepin does the same thing. It's in a couple of his recipes in his "Fast Food" books, and I've seen him use it on his shows. And I can confirm it does work like a charm. I love the finish on chicken cutlets when coated with Wondra and sauteed in browned butter.

[Fat Guy]

Julia Child's crepe recipe also calls for Wondra.

I just wonder if it's necessary in most applications. For example, crepes taste no better when made with Wondra, and it's not complex to make gravy with normal flour.

[Pierogi]

Julia Child's crepe recipe also calls for Wondra.

I just wonder if it's necessary in most applications. For example, crepes taste no better when made with Wondra, and it's not complex to make gravy with normal flour.

I would totally agree in applications like those, where the flour essentially dissolves into the product, and isn't "noticable" for want of a better word in the end result.

In the coating protein for a saute, though, I feel it totally makes a difference. You don't get that heavy "breaded", doughy coating you can get with normal flour, just a nice hint of a crust and some extra texture. The Wondra alone will not give you a coating like the traditional flour/egg/flour process, and I wouldn't use it if that was the effect I wanted. But for just a little extra light crunch, it's great, and I usually have some in the fridge for just that purpose.

[andiesenji]

I recently tried it for a oven-roasted bacon "recipe" that combined Wondra with granulated maple sugar.

I've used the maple sugar before but my friend suggested mixing the sugar with Wondra and it made a surprising difference. The bacon crisped up much quicker without overcooking it.

[Fat Guy]

This leads me to wonder: Paul, what do you want the Wondra for (sorry I have totally exceeded the scope of your question here)

[David Ross]

If you follow the cooking of Chef Eric Ripert (Le Bernadin), you'll find that he regularly uses Wondra flour to dust fish filets before sauteeing them. I always keep two cans in the cupboard for just that use--along with many others. Wondra is specially milled to be finer than all-purpose flour, thus the silky texture it lends to sauces and gravies. A kiss of Wondra on a filet of fish allows for a nice, brown color and a light yet crisp texture--without the heavy, cloying flavor and texture you'd get from all-purpose flour. Every supermarket in the Northwest has Wondra.

[janeer]

I've used it for sauteeing and pan frying for decades. And swear by it for shortbread.

[weinoo]

Hey Paul,

I can get it for you at my local market. Lemme know.

[Fat Guy]

Wondra is specially milled to be finer than all-purpose flour, thus the silky texture it lends to sauces and gravies.

I thought the deal with instant-blend flour was that it was cooked and then dried.

[Fat Guy]

McGee, On Food & Cooking, page 531:

"Instant" or "instantized" flours (two brand names are Shake & Blend and Wondra) are low-protein flours whose starch granules have been precooked until they gelate, then dried again. The precooking and drying make it easier for water to penetrate them again during cooking.

[Pierogi]

McGee, On Food & Cooking, page 531:

"Instant" or "instantized" flours (two brand names are Shake & Blend and Wondra) are low-protein flours whose starch granules have been precooked until they gelate, then dried again. The precooking and drying make it easier for water to penetrate them again during cooking.

That was my understanding of what Wondra is as well.

It may well be ground finer after the precooking, but is is definately precooked. That process is what helps to eliminate the gluey-ness that can happen when dusting proteins to be sauteed with regular flour, or trying to make gravy with regular flour if you're inexperienced in the kitchen.

[Dianabanana]

It's great for pan-frying oysters.