What is the difference between Almond flour and Almond meal?

Many products are made by almond kernels, the healthy and beneficial nut. The most popular products are almond oil, almond paste, almond butter, almond powder, almond flour, and almond meal. In this list, some products seem alike, even if you see them beside each other, it might be hard to distinguish them. Among them, almond flour and almond meal are like each other. They are the ground form of almond. However, some differences can separate them and make them recognizable. In this post, you can read more about the differences between almond flour and almond meal.

What is Almond flour?

Almond flour is made by grinding almonds. But, commonly, when we talk about almond flour, it refers to blanched almond flour, which has a white color because the skin of almonds is removed before grinding. Almond flour is used in different recipes, from baking bread to making cakes and different desserts. Blanched almond flour has a lighter weight, softer texture, and smaller flecks because they are ground more finely.

What are the uses of almond flour?

Almond flour is typically used in airy cakes, French macarons, cookies, and bread. Since almond flour is lighter than almond meal, most people use almond flour instead of almond meal.

What is Almond meal?

Although the almond meal is also made by grinding almonds, it has darker color because the almonds have their skin on during the grinding process. Additionally, almond flour has a more coarse grind compared to blanched almond flour. However, almond meal is slightly similar to unblanched almond flour.

What are the uses of almond meal?

Almond meal also is used in cooking bread, cookies, and cakes. However, since almond meal has a coarser fleck, it is mostly used for dressing salad, topping vegetables, and coating meat. Therefore, it is mostly used in cooking rather than baking.

Can we use almond meal instead of almond flour?

As mentioned earlier, since almond flour is lighter than almond meal, most people prefer to use the flour when baking cakes and different desserts because it gives the cake light and airy texture, and also makes it more digestible. Thus, in most cakes recipes you can use almond flour instead of almond meal. On the other hand, an almond meal is a better product in cooking. Since they have a different texture and larger flecks, they can give a better look and taste to what you cook. As a result, it is recommended to use almond meal in cooking, and don’t use them interchangeably in this case.

Bottom Line

Almond flour and almond meal are two products that look like each other. However, they have slightly some differences that distinguish them. Almond flour is usually referred to as the flour that is made by blanched almonds. It means that almonds’ skin is removed before grinding. Therefore, almond flour has a finer grind, which makes it lighter and powdery. On the other hand, almond meal is made by almonds that have their skins on. They are not ground granular and the final product has a darker color and coarse flecks. Although they can be used interchangeably, it is recommended to use almond flour for baking cakes and almond meal in cooking.