Flour with Terroir

Chisholm Trail Milling brings locally ground wheat back to Oklahoma

Styling By Kimberly Maucieri

They call this section of the Great Plains “Indian country,” a land of rich, red earth, wild storms, and fiery summer heat. All of these elements play a part in the unique terroir of Oklahoma wheat.

According to Graison Gill, founder of Chisholm Trail Milling, Oklahoma grows some of the world's best wheat. But 99% of it is exported to commercial flour companies where it's stripped of everything that makes it exceptional. Gill describes mainstream flour as “a flavorless paste that has no nutrition, no texture, and no relationship to the incredible soil in which it was grown.”

That’s why Gill and his partner, Brady Sidwell of Enid Brewing Co. and Enterprise Grain Company, created Chisholm, Oklahoma's only identity-preserved, stone-milled flour company. They operate three large stone mills in a 2,000 square foot facility in Enid.

What makes their flour so unique? Their flour is grown for flavor, not yield. Chisholm uses dry-farmed, whole grain wheat grown from public and heirloom varieties developed in partnership with Oklahoma State University. In talking with agricultural focused universities across the Plains, OSU understood the purpose and importance more than others. Now the partnership offers Durum Whole Wheat, Sonora Wheat, Red Whole Wheat, Rye Whole Grain, and White Whole Wheat.

Gill, an award winning baker and the owner of Bellegarde Bakery in New Orleans, knows a thing or two about flour, and Sidwell brings a progressive farming background to the partnership. Together, they hope to reframe the conversation, encouraging people to think of flour the way they do wine, coffee, or chocolate, focusing on taste, mouthfeel, and nutrient content.

“We're trying to help people understand that flour is just as important as any other ingredient in cuisine,” explains Gill.

It's an endeavor that holds promise as Chisholm Trail Milling’s flour finds its way into Oklahoma homes, bakeries, stores, and ultimately, its culinary heritage.