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Just Fresh Milled
Comparison

Einkorn vs Spelt: Which Ancient Grain Should You Bake With?

For everyday baking choose spelt; for distinctive flavor in pancakes and flatbreads choose einkorn.

Key Takeaways

  • Spelt is easier
  • Einkorn is more flavorful
  • Different use cases

Summary

Einkorn is older, more nutritious, and lower in gluten; spelt is easier to bake with and closer to modern wheat.

Side by side

AttributeEinkornSpelt
Protein18%14%
Gluten strengthWeakModerate
FlavorButtery, nuttySweet, mellow
Best usePancakes, flatbreadsSandwich bread, rolls

Einkorn strengths

  • Highest protein of ancient grains
  • Lowest gluten
  • Beautiful golden crumb

Weaknesses

  • Weak gluten — no tall loaves
  • Slow to hydrate

Spelt strengths

  • Forgiving for beginners
  • Versatile
  • Closest to modern wheat

Weaknesses

  • Less distinctive flavor
  • Over-kneads easily

Our recommendation

Start with spelt to learn ancient grains; graduate to einkorn for flatbreads and pancakes once you understand its quirks.

Related Content

Related Grains

Grain
ancient grain

Spelt

An ancient hexaploid wheat with mellow flavor and easy hydration.

Grain
ancient grain

Einkorn

The oldest cultivated wheat, prized for digestibility and rich flavor.

Related Recipes

Recipe
bread

100% Spelt Sandwich Bread

A soft, tender 100% fresh-milled spelt sandwich loaf with a tight even crumb — designed to slice cleanly without crumbling.

Recipe
sourdough

100% Whole Wheat Sourdough

A deeply flavored sourdough loaf made entirely from fresh milled hard red wheat.

Recipe
pancakes

Einkorn Pancakes

Light, custardy pancakes made with 100% fresh milled einkorn flour.

Related Techniques

Technique
beginner

How to Autolyse Fresh Milled Flour

Combine flour and water and let it rest before adding yeast and salt. Bran softens, gluten develops passively, and the final dough is dramatically easier to handle.

Technique
beginner

How to Sift Fresh Milled Flour

Pass freshly milled flour through a 50 or 60 mesh sieve. Reserve the bran for porridge or rebake it in.

Explore the full grains, recipes, techniques.

Frequently Asked Questions

Spelt. It has moderate gluten strength and behaves closest to modern wheat, so your existing recipes mostly work. Einkorn has weak gluten and hydrates slowly, which catches people out on their first bake.

Protein content and gluten strength are not the same thing. Einkorn carries the highest protein of the ancient grains at 18%, but its gluten forms a fragile network that will not hold a tall loaf. Spelt has less protein at 14% and more usable structure.

Pancakes and flatbreads. Anything that does not depend on gluten holding a tall structure plays to einkorn's strengths, and its buttery, nutty flavor and golden crumb come through best in those.

Yes, and it is the most common spelt mistake. Spelt's gluten breaks down faster than modern wheat, so stop mixing as soon as the dough comes together rather than working it to a full windowpane.