Soft wheat flour pre-mixed with baking powder and salt, common in Southern American and British baking for biscuits, scones and quick breads.
What it does in a recipe: Flour and leavening in one measure. Pick the swap that covers that job — the ratios below are written so you can act on them without doing any arithmetic.
Also called: Self-raising flour (UK)
2substitutes
2close matches
Flourscategory
Quick answer
All-purpose flour + baking powder + salt
1 cup self-rising flour = 1 cup all-purpose flour + 1 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1/4 tsp salt
All substitutes, best first
2 ways to replace self-rising flour
All-purpose flour + baking powder + salt
Closest match
1 cup self-rising flour = 1 cup all-purpose flour + 1 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1/4 tsp salt
This is exactly the commercial formulation, so it is a reconstruction rather than an approximation.
MethodWhisk thoroughly for a full 20 seconds so the leavening is evenly distributed — patchy mixing gives patchy rise.
Trade-offCommercial self-rising flour is milled from softer, lower-protein wheat, so biscuits made with all-purpose flour come out slightly less tender.
1 cup self-rising flour = 1 cup cake flour + 1 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1/4 tsp salt
Cake flour's low protein content matches the soft wheat that self-rising flour is actually milled from, making this the closer match for biscuits and scones.
Self-rising flour goes stale in a way plain flour does not — its baking powder loses strength within a few months. Buy it in small quantities, or mix your own as you need it.
Cooking around an allergy? Diet tags here describe the ingredient itself, not any particular brand. Processed products change formulation without notice and shared production lines are common, so read the label on everything you use. A severe allergy is a medical matter — confirm with the manufacturer or your clinician rather than relying on a substitution chart.