But wise home cooks and chefs know this quick-mixing all-purpose flour from Gold Medal brand as a much more versatile ingredient: the key to everything from velvety gumbo to pan-fried catfish and tempura-battered shrimp.

“Wondra is a superfine, pre-gelatinized flour that hydrates instantly and never clumps,” explains Joe Nierstedt, chef-owner of Katsubō in Charleston, South Carolina. Since it is precooked and ground up finely, Wondra has a lower protein content than traditional all-purpose flour, akin to cake flour or pastry flour.

Here’s everything you can do with the all-star ingredient, according to Nierstedt and other chefs.

Make smoother sauces and gravies

Wondra was developed in 1963 for gravies, and chefs indeed swear by it for any emulsified sauces. “Because proteins are located closer to the surface of the Wondra flour grains, there is less gluten development and therefore sauces remain smooth,” explains Riley Westbrook, cofounder and creative director of Valor Coffee in Georgia.

Regular all-purpose flour would require more time for stirring and heating prior to opening the starch grains, he explains, and could result in “an unpleasant raw flour taste from trapped protein.”

You can sprinkle Wondra directly over drippings or the starting liquids for a sauce and stir it in with a spoon over virtually no heat to create a smooth, thickened sauce or gravy — no whisking required.

Wondra also helps to stabilize sauces so they keep their silkiness for longer. “In our café settings, I lightly dust Wondra over melted butter to create a pan sauce that is served as part of the menu for breakfast plates,” Westbrook says. “Under heat lamps, these sauces maintain their shine and do not split for up to 15 minutes.” At home, you might use it for holidays like Thanksgiving when your gravy or sauces could be sitting out buffet-style.

Fry up the crispiest chicken

“Originally famous for lump-free gravy, (Wondra) is now a secret weapon in fried chicken,” says Nierstedt. For the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi he developed a Wondra-battered fried chicken served with sweet and spicy gochujang, honey garlic, or soy-garlic. “(Wondra) sticks evenly to the chicken, fries up crisp and lacy, and keeps the crust light without sacrificing structure,” he explains.

Because Wondra doesn’t develop gluten like regular all-purpose flour, it won’t get gummy in a wet dredge like a tempura batter. It will also stay crispy as it cools, as the low protein structure retains less moisture than regular flour. Even when used simply as a dry dredge, it still improves crispiness since its fine texture evenly coats the chicken or fish, ensuring a uniformly crisp exterior — no clumping or pockets of undercooked dredge.

You can use it for fried foods beyond chicken, too.

“I add 10 grams (about one tablespoon) of Wondra to the batter for making onion rings, allowing them to remain crispy after being fried since less gluten develops during cooking due to the reduced amount of flour used in the batter,” Westbrook says.

Bake light, fluffy baked goods

Wondra can even be used in some baked goods. “Not to be used as a substitute for all-purpose flour in recipes that require high gluten content (such as bread), Wondra is similar to cake flour and is therefore better suited for light pastries and cookies,” says Vivian Villa, founder of UnButter which produces fresh vegan butters.

Try it in pan-fried items like crepes or pancakes. Or substitute some of the all-purpose flour for Wondra when making a homemade piecrust (anywhere from half to two-thirds). The finer texture and lower protein content will help create a tender and flaky crust.