To make 1 cup of self-rising flour: combine 1 cup of all-purpose flour with 1½ teaspoons of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon of table salt. Whisk or sift together until uniform. Use it cup-for-cup anywhere self-rising flour is called for.
This produces the exact composition of commercial self-rising flour — it contains all-purpose flour, double-acting baking powder, and salt in the same proportions.
The formula at every scale
| Self-rising flour needed | All-purpose flour | Baking powder | Table salt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4 cup | 1/4 cup | 3/8 tsp | pinch (1/16 tsp) |
| 1/2 cup | 1/2 cup | 3/4 tsp | 1/8 tsp |
| 1 cup | 1 cup | 1 1/2 tsp | 1/4 tsp |
| 2 cups | 2 cups | 1 tbsp | 1/2 tsp |
| 3 cups | 3 cups | 4 1/2 tsp | 3/4 tsp |
How to make it
- Measure 1 level cup of all-purpose flour by the spoon-and-level method or weigh 120 g.
- Add 1½ teaspoons baking powder.
- Add ¼ teaspoon table salt.
- Whisk together thoroughly, or sift once to combine.
- Use immediately in your recipe.
If you want to make a larger batch for the pantry: mix the ratio above for however many cups you want, store in an airtight container, and label it with the date. Use within 3 months for best leavening power (the baking powder starts to lose potency after that).
Watch out for double-salting and double-leavening
The most common mistake with self-rising flour is using it in a recipe that also specifies baking powder and salt. You’ll end up with a recipe that has twice the leavening and salt. Look at your recipe:
- If it calls for self-rising flour and no extra baking powder or salt → use as written.
- If it calls for self-rising flour and additional baking powder or salt → either use all-purpose flour and follow the recipe as written, or use self-rising flour and omit the separately listed baking powder and salt.
Using other flour types
| Base flour | Resulting product |
|---|---|
| All-purpose (10–12% protein) | Standard self-rising flour |
| Cake flour (7–8% protein) | Southern-style self-rising flour (lighter biscuits) |
| Whole wheat flour | Higher-fiber version; denser texture |
| Gluten-free all-purpose blend | Works if the blend is 1:1 substitutable; add leavening as above |
Southern biscuit recipes often call for softer self-rising flour (White Lily brand is famous for this), which uses a lower-protein soft wheat flour. If you’re baking Southern-style biscuits and want the authentic texture, use cake flour as your base for the substitute.
Weight reference
For bakers who prefer to work by weight:
| Amount | AP flour | Baking powder | Table salt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup (120 g total) | 113 g | 5.7 g (1½ tsp) | 1.5 g (¼ tsp) |
Note: the baking powder and salt are small enough that weighing them requires a scale accurate to 0.1 g. For most home use, volume measurement of these small amounts is sufficient.
Why all-purpose flour is the right base
Self-rising flour in the US is made from all-purpose flour. Some Southern brands use a slightly lower-protein soft wheat flour (closer to pastry flour), which makes biscuits more tender. Standard all-purpose flour produces excellent results in biscuits, pancakes, quick breads, and most recipes that specify self-rising flour.
Don’t use bread flour — its high protein content (12–14%) produces too much gluten and makes baked goods tough.
Recipes that commonly use self-rising flour
Self-rising flour is most popular in Southern US baking, where it appears in:
- Biscuits: Southern biscuit recipes almost always use self-rising flour (or a low-protein soft wheat flour with the leavening already mixed in).
- Pancakes and waffles: Self-rising flour adds a consistent rise without needing to measure baking powder separately.
- Quick breads: Beer bread, banana bread, and zucchini bread recipes sometimes use self-rising flour for simplicity.
- Cobblers and dump cakes: Many traditional Southern cobbler recipes call for self-rising flour.
For all of these, the 1 cup AP flour + 1½ tsp baking powder + ¼ tsp salt formula works exactly as well as the commercial product.
What to do if the recipe specifies self-rising flour AND additional baking powder
Some published recipes are inconsistent — they list self-rising flour and also include baking powder or salt as additional ingredients. This may be a recipe error, or the recipe developer may have wanted extra leavening beyond what self-rising flour provides.
When in doubt:
- If the extra baking powder amount is 1 teaspoon or less, the recipe likely intended it as a supplement and you can include it.
- If the extra amount matches the standard 1½ teaspoons per cup, the developer may have intended all-purpose flour. Try the recipe both ways with a small test batch.
Making a pantry batch
If you use self-rising flour regularly, mix a larger batch and store it:
| Batch size | AP flour | Baking powder | Table salt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 cups | 2 cups | 1 tbsp | 1/2 tsp |
| 4 cups | 4 cups | 2 tbsp | 1 tsp |
| 8 cups | 8 cups | 4 tbsp | 2 tsp |
Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Label with the date. Use within 3 months — after that, the baking powder in the mixture begins to lose leavening power even without contact with liquid.