Gluten-Free Flour Blend Calculator
Mix your own all-purpose gluten-free flour blend by weight — how many grams of rice flour, potato starch and tapioca, plus the xanthan gum for your bake.
How it works
Rice : potato starch : tapioca = 3 : 2 : 1 by weight · Xanthan gum = cups × (¼ cake / ½ all-purpose / 1 bread) tsp
A reliable homemade all-purpose gluten-free flour combines a grain flour for structure and flavour with lighter starches for tenderness — a classic ratio is three parts rice flour to two parts potato starch to one part tapioca starch by weight. Because gluten normally provides elasticity and gas-trapping, xanthan gum is added to mimic it: less for tender cakes, more for chewy bread. Measuring by weight is far more consistent than cups for gluten-free flours, which vary widely in density.
Worked example
For 500 g of blend: 250 g rice flour, about 167 g potato starch and 83 g tapioca starch. That is roughly 3.8 cups, so a cake needing ¼ tsp gum per cup uses about 1 tsp xanthan gum.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use this blend cup-for-cup for wheat flour?
In most recipes, yes — an all-purpose GF blend with xanthan gum substitutes 1:1 by weight for wheat flour. Very structure-dependent bakes like crusty artisan bread may still need recipe-specific adjustments.
What does xanthan gum do?
It replaces the elasticity and gas-trapping that gluten normally provides, holding baked goods together and improving texture. Use less for cakes and more for breads; leaving it out gives crumbly, fragile results.
Why weigh instead of using cups?
Gluten-free flours differ hugely in density, so a "cup" can vary by 30% or more in weight. Mixing by weight makes the ratios exact and your results repeatable batch to batch.
Related calculators
Educational estimate for meal planning, not medical or nutrition advice. Serving thresholds and needs vary by person — check with a dietitian for medical diets.