What can be used to replace starch

Everyone must have encountered the situation when they were cooking that the seasoning they wanted to use was out of stock, and the dish was already in the pot but they couldn’t go out to buy some, so they could only find some substitute seasonings or choose not to use them. Starch is used in many dishes. If starch is gone, what can be used to replace it? In daily life, potatoes can replace starch, because potatoes are the raw material for making starch. You can try it~

1. What can be used to replace starch?

If you really don't have starch on hand, but you need it urgently when cooking, you can take two potatoes, or one, peel them, wash them, and cut them into strips or slices.

Then soak the potato shreds or potato slices in clean water for a while, then take out the potato shreds or potato slices and leave the soaking water there for 10 minutes.

Then slowly pour out the clear soup on top, and what is left below is water starch, which can be used for cooking. The longer the soaking time, the thicker the starch.

2. Can starch be replaced by flour?

Flour cannot replace starch because their roles and functions are different. Starch can be used to thicken soups to make them viscous, and can be used to wrap fried foods to make meat soft and tender, but flour does not have this effect.

Starch cannot be replaced by flour. Flour is very sticky and cannot be used for thickening. However, it can be used for frying chicken legs.

In fact, when starch is used in small quantities, flour can be used instead, but the amount should be less than starch, and it must be eaten while hot.

Soups and stews made with starch have a "muddy" feeling after cooling down and are a bit sticky in the mouth. Maybe it's because the particles are too large.

3. What is starch?

Starch is mainly made from foods with high starch content such as beans. If used in cooking, it needs to be mixed with water and poured into the dish before it is cooked to make the dish sticky. There is a reason why people use starch in cooking. Human taste is related to the physical state and chemical composition of food, and physical conditions such as humidity, viscosity, temperature, tenderness and other factors will affect the taste of food. Food tastes different depending on how hot or cold it is when it comes into contact with the human tongue, as well as the length of time it comes into contact with the tongue. For example, the dish of fried tripe, when eaten while hot, tastes fragrant, crispy, tender, and thick, which increases the viscosity. In this way, the dish stays on the tongue longer, and the contact area between the dish and the tongue is increased, so the taste feels thick and long. Take fried pork slices as an example. Starch should be used to coat the meat slices before frying. The function of starch is to prevent the nutrients and gravy inside the meat slices from flowing out; secondly, it can reduce the water loss of the meat slices. When the food is almost cooked, use starch to thicken it. This will disperse the seasoning to the taste buds on the tongue, increasing the contact time and area, thereby improving the deliciousness of the food.