Maida, maida flour, or maida mavu is a type of wheat flour originated from the Indian subcontinent. [1] [2] It is a super-refined[ citation needed ] wheat flour used in Indian cuisine to make pastries and other bakery items like breads and biscuits. Some maida may have tapioca starch added.[ citation needed ]
Maida is made from the endosperm: the starchy white part of the grain. The bran is separated from the germ and endosperm which is then refined by passing through a sieve of 80 mesh per inch (31 mesh per centimeter). [3] Although naturally yellowish due to pigments present in wheat, maida is typically bleached, either naturally due to atmospheric oxygen, or with any of a number of flour bleaching agents. [4]
While it is milled from winter wheat that has a high gluten content, heat generated during the milling process results in denaturing of the protein, limiting its use in the preparation of leavened breads. [5]
A common claim in the popular media is that maida contains alloxan, added as a bleaching agent or formed as a byproduct of bleaching. [6] While it is a minor product of xanthophyll oxidation, there is no evidence that trace amounts of alloxan formed comprise a health risk. [7]
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)