Soft Wheat Is Low in Protein and Gluten
Soft wheat has 2 main characteristics:
1️⃣ It is white in color.
2️⃣ It is low in protein. About 9% to 15% of its content is protein ... which produces gluten.
What About Gluten and Pasta?
Gluten is very important for pasta and for baked goods in general. We'll keep this simple and focus on the basics.
When water is added and mixed with wheat flour (whether soft or hard) gluten is produced thanks to the protein in the flour. Gluten is essentially a net-like, gum-like structure that provides elastic toughness to the dough and it helps to hold the shape of whatever it is used in. Consider this ... the higher the protein content in the flour, the more structure is guaranteed to the final product; the lower the protein content in the flour, the minimal structure is provided.
Did you know? 'Gluten' is originally the Latin word for ‘glue’?