teorie /explicatii fainuri

Einkorn in German, einkorn or littlespelt in English, piccolo farro in Italian and espelta petita in
Catalan.
ALAC=Einkorn wheat (from German Einkorn, literally "single grain") can refer either to the wild
species of wheat, Triticum baeoticum, or to the domesticated form, Triticum monococcum.
Einkorn is like most plants in that it is a diploid meaning it contains 2 sets of
chromosomes. About 2,000 years after einkorn wheat, emmer wheat was created by the
hybridization of 2 wild grasses. Consequently, emmer has 4 sets of chromosomes. Kamut
and Durum wheat are both descendents of emmer.
Spelt is the result of hybridization between cultivated emmer and another wild grass and
so contains six sets of chromosomes. Modern wheat is a descendent of spelt.
Note that while extensive hybridization of wheat has occurred over the millenia, there is currently no
genetically modified wheat on the market.
As you can see, einkorn is the purest and most ancient form of wheat available as it only has 2 sets of
chromosomes and naturally contains a very different composition of gluten that is easier to digest for
many with non-genetic gluten intolerance.
While I often receive the question, Which is better? or Which is healthier? I struggle to answer that
question. I dont think that any individual grain is necessarily better; rather, theyre marginally different
from one another. The nutrient profile of any given food also changes depending on how you prepare it
in your home; sour leavening, for example, increases the folate content of grain.
Compared to modern varieties of wheat, ancient grains and heirloom wheat berries typically are lower
in gluten (though still higher in protein), as well as higher in micronutrients like minerals and
antioxidants. Einkorn has a higher concentration of beta carotene and lutein than modern wheat
varieties. However, spelt has a marginally lower concentration of B vitamins and phosphorus compared
to modern wheat varieties.
Beyond the three grains collectively called farro, theres also heirloom varieties of wheat notably
Turkey Red Wheat which was brought to the US by Russian and Ukrainian immigrants in the 19th
century.
In terms of which is better, they each offer slightly different flavors, with slightly different attributes in
baking and marginal differences in the content of their micronutrients.

Isnt all wheat genetically modified (GMO)?

No. For the love of God, STOP repeating this rumor.
Modern wheat has been progressively hybridized over several generations to improve yield, to increase
gluten (which improves bread quality) and for various other reasons. After WWII, as part of the Green
Revolution, scientists made some significant changes to heritage wheat that resulted in increased yields
and higher gluten content. It has not been genetically modified through bioengineering, until very
recently, and then GMO wheat is not currently on the market, though a small patch of it escaped and
was found growing in a field where it was not intentionally planted for testing. For the record, thats not
the same thing as ever bit of wheat flour in the world (or in the US, depending on the rumor you heard)
being a biotech crop.

Einkorn is the only form of wheat left on planet earth that is completely unhybridized. It is an ancient
wheat and not to be confused with heirloom wheat varieties such as Red Fife, Halychanka, or White
Sonora, all of which are hybridized.
Science has studied the type of gluten in einkorn, and some stark differences were noted huge
differences, in fact, that incredibly enough make einkorn super digestible even for those with gluten
intolerance.
In order to understand how different the gluten in einkorn is, however, we need to talk about gluten
itself and the different types that are contained in other types of wheat.
What? There are different types of gluten?
Yes there are!

Not All Gluten is the Same!

Lets start off by debunking one very persistent myth about einkorn.
Einkorn is not lower in gluten than spelt, emmer, durum or any other type of wheat modern or
ancient. According to the USDA, einkorn contains roughly the same or even slightly more protein
(remember, gluten is the protein in wheat) per 100 grams as these hybridized wheat strains.
As a result, being lower in gluten is not the reason why those who are gluten intolerant can usually eat
einkorn just fine.
Rather, einkorn is more easily digested because the gluten is flat out different.
Lets dig into that further and see what scientists have discovered .

The Proteins that Form Gluten

There are two types of protein that form gluten: Glutenins and gliadins.
These proteins bond together in gluey fashion to form gluten when flour containing them is mixed with
water or another liquid. The gluten that forms in bread dough gives it the ability to hold air bubbles.
Glutenins are described as either high molecular weight or low molecular weight. This is a very
important distinction because bread flour is considered to be ideal for modern breadmaking purposes
when it contains a large amount of high molecular weight glutenin. This influences, to a great extent,
the finished volume of a loaf as well as the mixing time and elasticity.
If you have ever baked with einkorn and compared it to baking with other types of wheat, you no doubt
have noticed that it is less elastic and much more sticky. This is because einkorn is lacking in some of
the high molecular weight glutenins that are present in ample amounts in hybridized wheat.
With regard to gliadins, the other type of protein that forms gluten, the situation is similar. Researchers
subdivide gliadins into several different types based on their amino acid sequences. In einkorn, groups
of y-gliadins present in other types of wheat are completely missing!
Moreover, compared with hybridized wheat like spelt, kamut, durum, emmer, and modern wheat,
einkorn has a very different ratio of glutenins to gliadins. Most notably, the ratio of gliadins to glutenins
in einkorn is much higher. In hybridized wheat, the ratio is about 1:1.