Wheat berries, soft or hard??

[MommyB]

Okay, this could turn out to be a really stupid question, but I'm going to ask it anyway :o I bought some wheat berries from a bulk bin and now I don't know if they are soft or hard. Are the soft ones actually physically soft? If so then I got the hard ones:mad: Not the ones I wanted because I'm dying to make some breads!! Thanks for your help!

[Bananapie]

I am not so sure that soft and hard refer to the kernal texture as much as the season it was grown in. Hard winter wheat and soft tend to be spring wheat. But I will ask a good friend of mine who is a long time baker, she is sure to know will post again soon

[Green Life]

I'm a baker, and a candle stick maker, LOL!!

Anyway, hard winter wheat is higher in gluten and protein, and is best suited for yeast containing foods such as breads. It takes longer to become soft when soaked then the Spring Wheat does, so I would assume by that that the hard wheat is, indeed, a harder grain.

Spring wheat is lower in glutenand protein, and lends itself to more delicate bakery goods such as cakes and other non-yeast baked goods.

So, for us rawfoodies, I would say that it would be, to me, an individual choice. The Hard winter wheat is a much stronger tasting grain, whereas the Spring wheat has a more delicate, less commanding character about it, if you will. I have used eaither type interchangeably with no problem. Again, it's a matter of personal taste.

Hope that helps and does'nt confuse you even more.

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