What is cornstarch?
Extracted from corn kernels’ endosperm (the starchy part of the kernel, which makes up the large majority of it), cornstarch is a fine white powder often used as a thickening agent when cooking soups and sauces, as well as for fruit fillings when baking pie. It’s denser than flour, so a little goes a long way!
You can replace it with:
- Flour: You can easily replace cornstarch with flour in many recipes by doubling the amount of flour. You can then mix it with water or broth and pour a thin stream into your container, ensuring that you have no lumps. For a pastry cream, you should mix the flour with the sugar before adding the remaining ingredients. For a thicker sauce, you can use toasted flour, which you can sprinkle directly into your mixture. Use twice as much toasted flour as the amount of cornstarch required.
- Flour and butter: In instances where you need to mix cornstarch and broth to help thicken a soup, you can use flour and butter to make a beurre manié. For each 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, replace it with 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of flour. Gradually add it while whisking until you reach the desired texture. This works for soups, stews and sauces.
- Puréed vegetables: This is a great way to use any excess carrots or potatoes. Once puréed, they can be used to thicken sauces. There is no ratio here, so you would need to go with your own taste.
- Tapioca starch: In most uses, you’ll need to replace 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 4 tablespoons of tapioca starch. However, if you’re using it for a pie filling, use the same amount as suggested in the recipe.
Looking for ways to substitute other ingredients in the kitchen? Check out our ultimate guide: