6 Cornstarch Substitutes for All Your Cooking and Baking Needs

If you come across you in require of a cornstarch substitute, irrespective of whether thanks to a corn allergy, working with up your stash to make non-Newtonian fluid for a science task, or basically forgetting to restock, do not fret. Cornstarch is a workhorse of a pantry staple—it’s a stabilizer for whips and emulsions a thickener for stir-fries, soups, jams, and jellies a crisp-ifying miracle dredge for fried, baked, and sauteed foods—and it really is quite worthy of trying to keep a tub of it all around. But these six swaps can get these work opportunities finished just as well. Which a single you use relies upon on the recipe, your desires, and what pantry staples you have on hand.

Potato Starch

Potato starch is the cornstarch substitute preferred of associate meals editor Kendra Vaculin. A light, white powder extracted from crushed potatoes, it is really an almost flawless one-to-1 swap for cornstarch in all applications. You can use it to make a thickening slurry for sleek, creamy Homemade Queso, or toss it with tofu to give it a light-weight, ethereal, crispy shell, like in this Saucy Tofu With Garam Masala. Kendra, who’s allergic to corn, always retains a bag of her go-to brand name, Bob’s Purple Mill, in her kitchen. “It’s even sweet adequate to use in desserts like marshmallow recipes,” states Kendra.

Rice Flour

When it comes to crispy, craggy, shatteringly crunchy dredges for fried proteins, rice flour is a great substitute for cornstarch, with 1 exception: It really is a minimal pricier. If you require to use a large total, you may possibly increase the expense of your cooking challenge substantially. Even now, you can swap in an equal total of rice flour in spot of cornstarch in recipes like Chicken Karaage or Harissa Honey Popcorn Rooster, and you’ll uncover the success just as satisfyingly crunchy. Be mindful making use of rice flour as a thickening agent, however. Some brands may perhaps result in a grittier—or gummier—texture. For the greatest benefits, look for out wonderful-milled white rice flour.

All-Objective Flour

If you’ve at any time designed a roux, you know how well superior ol’ all-objective flour thickens sauces, gravies, and stews. It is not a fantastic substitute for cornstarch: A sauce thickened with cornstarch will be far more translucent, whilst one thickened with all-function flour will be opaque and have a thicker texture. It also won’t offer the identical slim, shatteringly crisp crust cornstarch gives to some fried foodstuff, but it can get the job done for possibly condition in a pinch. Some ideas: Use 2 tablespoons of flour for each individual tablespoon of cornstarch. If creating a pan sauce, prepare dinner the flour in a bit of body fat first—you can make this as toasty and caramelized as you want—or boil the sauce for a several minutes to get rid of the “uncooked flour” taste and texture.

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Tapioca Flour

Extracted from the root of cassava, tapioca flour (or tapioca starch) is one particular of the greatest cornstarch substitutes for puddings and sweet sauces. Will not confuse this with cassava flour, which is a lot more fibrous and made working with the full root. Tapioca flour is a stellar thickening agent, but be watchful about overdoing it. It will not really mimic the texture of cornstarch just and can veer into gummy territory if you use way too considerably (if you enjoy bubble tea and boba, you might be common with tapioca’s potential chew component). Use two times the amount of money of tapioca flour to exchange the cornstarch in your recipe, and you should not overheat or boil for an extreme volume of time. Use it in jammy fruit pie filling or desserts like this Plum-Cardamom Crumble With Pistachios or an eggy, jiggly Custard Tart With Product and Clean Fruit.

Arrowroot Powder

Arrowroot powder (also named arrowroot starch or arrowroot flour) may perhaps be extracted from the roots of many tropical crops, which includes cassava. Generally made use of to add airiness to gluten-absolutely free and vegan desserts, it can also perform as a thickening agent, just like cornstarch—but be cautious that it’s a contact extra finicky. Arrowroot won’t behave properly when heated and tends to slender out as shortly as it is really cooked, so use it in recipes exactly where you never require to get worried about immediate heat or a very long simmer—desserts
are a excellent position for this. Get started by dissolving it in chilly water (a one-to-a single ratio of arrowroot powder to cornstarch ought to do the trick) ahead of bit by bit including to home-temperature sauces.

Xanthan Gum

Realistically speaking, if you really don’t have cornstarch in your pantry, you might be most very likely not stocked up on xanthan gum. Typically derived from cornstarch by a fermentation approach (if you’ve obtained a corn allergy, beware!), it is really a widespread thickening agent and is generally employed in gluten-free of charge baking recipes to mimic the stretchiness of wheat flour. As a substitute for cornstarch, you require just a very little little bit for sauces and gravies. It’s got important thickening power—think 50 percent a teaspoon or much less for an overall pan of gravy. Get started really sluggish, and increase far more as essential.

Thickening one thing sweet? Might we advise quick pudding?

Fast pudding combine is the critical to no-prepare dinner pastry product and no-weep whipped product.

Originally Appeared on Bon Appétit