Q: Can I replace flour with cornstarch?

The short answer is, probably not. But it depends on what you are doing.

The flour and corn starch are two different things. Wheat flour, contains protein, starch and fiber. Known protein gluten, whereby the dough is resilient, when it is kneaded, and is back structure.

Corn starch, in addition, is made from corn flour that is treated to remove proteins and the fibers, while the starch produced. Since they are pure strength could not cornstarch cooking because no protein or fiber in it.

Corn starch: What is good?

What is good for the corn starch thickening things like sauces, desserts and cake fillings. This is because, if they cooked the starch acts like a sponge, absorbing and expanding how it works.

[See also: How to thicken the sauce with corn starch]

Also gelatinized, which means that it sets when it has cooled, you might want a cream pie filling.

All strengths have this property, so that the flour is often used to thicken sauces - usually as part of a roux.

But because it is pure starch, cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. So you need twice as much use flour to thicken the same as corn starch. Too much flour will make your sauce or dressing or whatever to make his once thick and sticky, and have a floury taste, which is probably not what you want.

In addition, corn starch is a bright translucent appearance, which is a desirable property for fruit fillings for cakes and some sauces (especially in Chinese cuisine). Not flour.

Roasted corn starch

Corn starch can also give you a crispy fried foods-layer. This works because the corn starch absorbs moisture from the food and grow, and then when the food fried, cooking corn starch moisture, leave inflated the crispy outer coating.

Flour is to a certain extent, but again, you need to use more flour to achieve the same effect, and is a thick rubber coating rather than light, crisp corn starch product.

So usually you can replace flour with cornstarch, but you have to use the flour as cornstarch twice, the denser / thicker the result that the recipe will have to make it harder /.

A better solution would be to another, replace as arrowroot starch, potato, tapioca or rice flour.

See also: How to thicken the sauce