Why you should consider adding these ingredients for your next Fresh-Milled Flour (FMF) bread.

Challenges of FMF over AP Flour

Since fresh-milled flour includes all the bran + germ (sharp particles + oils) and often has higher enzymatic activity than aged white AP flour, it tends to:

• Cut gluten strands (bran acts like tiny blades)
• Soak up water unevenly (bran hydrates slowly; dough can feel “dry then suddenly slack”)
• Make dough feel weaker/stickier at the same hydration
• Shorten your window between “perfectly proofed” and “overproofed / collapses”

So additives like VWG and ACV are basically “stability tools” to offset that.

Rule of thumb:

• VWG = more lift/structure.

• ACV = more stability/handling.

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Vital Wheat Gluten (VWG)

FMF has bran/germ that interfere with gluten and make loaves rise shorter/denser. VWG:

• Boosts dough strength + gas-holding → taller loaf, better oven spring
• Improves crumb → less dense/crumbly, more sliceable
• Adds tolerance → less collapse/spread if hydration or proof is a little off

Default recommendation for VWG: 3% of flour

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Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)

FMF can get stickier/weaker as it ferments (more active enzymes + whole-grain particles). A tiny bit of ACV:

• Slightly lowers pH → helps keep dough from turning slack/gummy over time
• Tightens handling → less spread, cleaner shaping
• Supports structure indirectly → helps the gluten you do build hold up longer

Default recommendation for ACV: 0.5% of flour