Have you tried rice flour before? It is one of the famous types of flour, and housewives can make it themselves at home, and it has important and useful health benefits, especially since it is gluten-free. For this reason, we will explain to you here the most important benefits of rice flour, its nutritional value, and how to make it at home easily? And some warnings, so follow this article with us.

What is rice flour?

Rice flour, also called rice powder, is a very popular type of flour in Arab and international homes, especially if you are looking for a healthy and beneficial alternative to wheat flour and it is gluten-free, if you suffer from gluten sensitivity.

This flour is made from finely ground rice, and it can be made from white rice and brown rice, and this flour is considered one of the most popular foods that people in Southeast Asia, India and Japan depend on permanently, due to its health benefits and its non-tiring properties for the body, and it can be used to make Lots of different foods. But in general, it may lack some nutrients that are found in other types of flour.

The difference between white and brown rice flour

The nutritional values ​​differ between white rice flour and brown rice, and the texture differs between them.

Nutritional value of rice flour

Below we will show you the nutritional values ​​of these two types of flour per 100 grams:

Nutritional value of white rice flour

• 80 grams of carbohydrates.
• 2.4 grams of dietary fiber.
• 5.9 grams of protein.

Nutritional value of brown rice flour

• 76.5 grams of carbohydrates.
• 4.6 grams of dietary fiber.
• 7.2 milligrams of protein.

The white and brown types also contain a variety of vitamins and minerals in small proportions, the most important of which are vitamin E and B vitamins, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium.

Calories in rice flour

Each 100 grams of flour made from white rice contains 366 calories, while flour made from brown rice contains 363 calories.

Benefits of rice flour

There are many health benefits of this flour, whether it comes from white or brown rice, and we will explain these benefits to you in detail.

1. It is gluten-free

This is one of the most important advantages and benefits of this flour, especially for those who suffer from gluten sensitivity and cannot eat any products made from other types of flour to avoid any allergic reactions, and for this reason rice flour is a healthy and good alternative for them.

2. Its high percentage of protein

Rice flour contains high levels of protein, especially made from brown rice, because brown rice retains the husks when milled, and this makes it the first choice for many people due to its high levels of protein, as well as vitamins, zinc and calcium found in the husks.

3. Support liver function and health

This flour can provide effective health support for liver functions, due to the fact that it contains a substance called choline. This substance has the function of transporting triglycerides and cholesterol from the liver to the body, and this keeps the liver in good health.

4. High in fiber

This flour provides high percentages and a good amount of natural dietary fiber, and this makes it very good for diet systems and diets that some may follow to lose excess weight, and its fiber helps a lot to improve blood sugar levels, reduces cholesterol levels and has a very important role in Digestion Process.

5. The benefits of rice flour for skin and hair

There are many recipes and methods that depend on rice flour, whether to lighten the skin or as a scrub and sometimes as sun protection. Indeed, the components of this flour have factors that act as:

• Antioxidants and dermatitis.
• Anti-aging and wrinkles of the skin and complexion.
• Skin protectant as it reduces damage caused by ultraviolet rays.
• Exfoliating skin, especially brown rice flour, because it contains peels.
• Supportive of improving skin health.
• Supports hair regrowth.
• It treats the problem of skin pigmentation and acne, and helps lighten the skin.
• An important healer for wound healing because it contains allantoin, which has soothing and anti-inflammatory properties.

A mask can be made from this flour by adding a percentage of rice flour with another useful ingredient such as olive oil or rose water.

How to make rice flour at home

This flour is sold in various shops, but it can be made at home easily, without cost, in a safe and healthy manner, as follows:

the ingredients

• Raw white or brown rice.
• fine strainer.
• Blender.
• Tissue paper.
• frying pan or bowl.
• sieve
• Water.

How to prepare

• Rinse the rice well with running water, filter it, put it in clean cold water, and soak it for 3 to 6 hours.
• After that, we filter the rice with the mesh strainer well for 10 to 15 minutes, then put it on paper towels and leave it to dry for at least an hour, so the rice should be moist and not wet.
• We then use the blender to grind the rice half a cup by half a cup, and it is preferable to increase the speed of the blender gradually and not all at once.
• Add the resulting flour after that to the empty pan on the fire so that any steam or water from it evaporates for a period of 3 to 5 minutes, and leave it to rest.
• Using the sieve, we sift the resulting flour, remove the large granules from it and grind them again and sift them.
• We store it in a dry and cool place and the container with the flour must be tightly closed.
• Now it is ready to use for either cooking or baking.

Note: A cup of raw rice makes a cup of flour for you, so that you know how much you want to make and get from this flour.

Rice flour uses

You can replace any other flour with rice flour to prepare any recipes, foods, or baked goods. They have the same uses with very minor differences, but there are some tips that you should take into account when using rice flour, namely:

• The nutritional value of wheat flour exceeds the nutritional value of rice flour, if the two types of flour are compared to each other.
• Flour extracted from rice has less yeast than other types of flour, so it may require you, while using it, a larger amount of yeast or baking soda at the time of preparation.

Damage to rice flour

Flour made from rice is considered a healthy and beneficial flour, but as it has benefits, there are some harms that you should beware of, namely:

• The folic acid in rice flour is much lower than in wheat flour.
• Flour made from rice contains fewer phytonutrients. Wheat flour contains 30% more husk compared to it. These husks are very important because they have the ability to fight cancer and promote lowering of cholesterol levels, thus reducing heart and arterial diseases. This is also in the interest of wheat flour over rice.
• Despite the benefits of rice for the digestive system and its facilitation of the digestion process and its importance in healthy diets, but sometimes rice and its products may be contaminated with arsenic, so if you have a problem in the digestive system or any abnormal symptom if you use rice or flour made from it, you should consult specialist doctor.