Mindanao State University

Marawi Campus

Department of Chemical Engineering

ChE 158 Unit Operations Laboratory 2

Experiment No.1

Flour Making

Presented to

Mary Jane G. Zozobrado

By

Ernie Mark P. Maratas

2021
 Abstract

This experiment’s objective is to make flour out of coconut meat. The extracted and dried

coconut meat was ground into very fine powder then sealed to avoid oxidation and rancidity of

coconut meat. Coconut flour was tested in producing pancakes and the result showed that

coconut meat is viable in producing flour.

 Introduction

Flour is a finely ground powder prepared from grain or other starchy plant foods and used

in baking. Although most flour is made from wheat, it can also be made from other starchy plant

foods. These include barley, buckwheat, corn, lima beans, oats, peanuts, potatoes, soybeans, rice,

and rye. Many varieties of wheat exist for use in making flour. In general, wheat is either hard

(containing 11-18% protein) or soft (containing 8-11% protein). Flour intended to be used to

bake bread is made from hard wheat. The high percentage of protein in hard wheat means the

dough will have more gluten, allowing it to rise more than soft wheat flour. Flour intended to be

used to bake cakes and pastry is made from soft wheat. All-purpose flour is made from a blend

of soft and hard wheat. Durum wheat is a special variety of hard wheat, which is used to make a

kind of flour called semolina. Semolina is most often used to make pasta.

Flour usually contains small number of additives. Bleaching agents such as benzoyl

peroxide are added to make the flour whiter. Oxidizing agents (also known as improvers) such as

potassium bromate, chlorine dioxide, and azodicarbonamide are added to enhance the baking

quality of the flour. These agents are added in a few parts per million. Self-rising flour contains

salt and a leavening agent such as calcium phosphate. It is used to make baked goods without the

need to add yeast or baking powder.

The main objective of this experiment is to make flour out of coconut meat and to test its

viability in pastry production as substitute for common commercial flour.

 Experiment

Materials:

 mature coconut

 grinder

 heat dryer

Procedure:

Flour Production

Matured coconut was selected and bought from the store. The coconut meat was separated

from its shell by a mechanical grinder. To extract the coconut milk from its meat, small amount

of water was added about 2:1, then pressed to drain the milk along with water. The process was

repeated until very small amount of milk was left in the meat. The meat was then dried by

roasting over low heat in a pan. Do not dry the meat in the sun as the coconut meat will oxidize

and turn rancid. After drying, the dried meat was ground in a mechanical-flour-grinder to

powderize. Store the powdered coconut in a sealable storage to avoid oxidation.

Pancake Production

Per 4 servings
Ingredients:
 1 cup flour (1/4 cup coconut flour)
 2 tbsp white sugar
 2 tsp baking powder
 1 tsp salt
 1 egg (beaten)
 1 cup milk
 2 tbsp oil

Procedure:
 In a large bowl, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt was mixed by first making a well in the

center, milk, egg and oil was then added and mixed well. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying

pan over medium heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately ¼ cup for

each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Note!

Coconut flour is high in fiber, it’s different from wheat flour. When baking with it, you

should only use ¼ of the amount of flour you would normally use in a recipe.
 Results and Discussion

Figure 1. Dried coconut meat Figure 2. Coconut flour

Figure 3. Pancake using commercial flour Figure 4. Pancake using coconut flour

Coconut flour doesn’t stick too much unlike the commercial flour. Although, it doesn’t

taste bad and doesn’t differ much with pancakes made from all-purpose flour.
 Conclusion

The experiment showed that in terms of functional properties; the pasting characteristics

of coconut flour was poor in comparison to the staple flours. This clearly showed that coconut

flour possesses limited ability to function as the main ingredient in bakery food formulation.

Contrary to the poor pasting properties, coconut flour indicated better prospect ahead of some of

the staple flours in terms of hydration characteristics such as water absorption and swelling

power. This strengthens its potential ability to be used in composite proportion with other flours.
 References

[1] Blessing I. O. (2014). Chemical, functional and pasting properties of wheat (Triticum sp),

walnut (Juglansregia) flour. Food and Nutrition Science; 5: 1591-1604.

http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/fns.2014.516172

[2] Dhankhar P. (2013). A Study on Development of Coconut Based Gluten Free Cookies.

International Journal of Engineering Science Invention; 2(12):10–19.

[3] Tanaka Y. and Matsumoto H. (1997). Science in the Process of

Breadmaking. Tokyo: Korin Publishing Co. pp. 122-128