What is Cornflour, Cornstarch, Maize Starch? glossary, uses

🌽 The ingredient known internationally as Cornflour (or Corn Starch in North America) plays a fundamental and versatile role in the Indian kitchen. In India, its primary role is not as a main flour for bread-making but as a thickening agent. It is the go-to powder used to give body and consistency to sauces, gravies, and soups. Its fine, powdery texture and neutral taste make it indispensable for achieving a desired viscosity without altering the flavor of complex Indian curries or Chinese-Indian fusion dishes.

Versatile Uses Across Indian Cuisine

Cornflour's versatility makes it a staple ingredient across various cuisines in India. Beyond thickening, its second major use is in coating and battering. When combined with all-purpose flour (maida) and spices, it forms a crisp, light coating for fried starters. This is evident in popular restaurant dishes like Gobi Manchurian, and various crispy vegetable pakoras (fritters). It ensures that the exterior of the fried food is extra crunchy, providing a delightful textural contrast to the soft interior. It's also sometimes used in baking to make cakes and biscuits more tender.

Affordability and Accessibility

One of the key reasons for Cornflour's widespread use in India is its low cost and high availability. Since it is derived from corn, a crop grown abundantly across the country, it remains an inexpensive staple found in nearly every general store, supermarket, and small village kirana shop. This affordability ensures that it is used by home cooks and street food vendors alike, democratizing its use across all economic strata. Its long shelf life also contributes to its constant presence in the Indian pantry.

Regional Variations and Names

While "Cornflour" is commonly understood, the ingredient is known by different names depending on the context and regional language. In Hindi, it's widely sold as कॉर्नफ्लोर or sometimes differentiated from besan (chickpea flour) simply by its texture. Regionally, it may be loosely grouped with starchy flours: in Telugu, it might be referred to as మొక్కజొన్న పిండి (Mokkajonna Pindi); in Marathi, कॉर्न फ्लोअर; and in Bengali, it's referred to as কর্ন ফ্লাওয়ার. This slight linguistic ambiguity highlights its functional role rather than a precise traditional identity, as it was popularized relatively recently, primarily through Indo-Chinese and baking trends.

Culinary Applications Across Different States

Cornflour's application varies based on regional culinary trends. In the North, especially in the Punjab region, it is crucial for creating the thick, glossy gravies of Indo-Chinese dishes that are immensely popular, such as Vegetable Manchurian or Hakka Noodles sauces.

Recipe Examples and Versatility

The functionality of Cornflour is best demonstrated through recipe examples. Classic applications include Gobi Manchurian (where it forms the crispy coating and the sauce thickener), Sweet Corn Soup (where it gives the soup its silky body), and Paneer Chilli (for both the paneer coating and the chili sauce glaze). Its ability to create a smooth, translucent finish and its neutral flavor profile make it a non-negotiable component in these modern Indian staples.

How to select Cornflour, Cornstarch, Maize Starch

• Select corn flour, which is white and powdery, without any lumps or discoloration.

• While buying corn flour, also watch out for the expiry date.

12 Ways to use Cornflour, Cornstarch, Maize Starch

1. In the kitchen, cornstarch can be used as a binder for cutlets, koftas or similar foods, or as a thickener for sauces, stews and soups.

2. An addition of cornflour slurry to milk helps in reducing and thickening it. Make delicious ice-creams like Tender Coconut, Lychee Ice Cream, Orange Ice Cream at home.

3. Always make a paste of cornstarch and cold water before adding to heated foods to prevent lumping. When cornstarch paste is added, cook over medium heat and bring to a boil for about one minute. Remove and serve. Do not overcook as it will begin to break down and thin out. Stir continuously but gently. Vigorous whisking will also cause loss of texture.

4. Cornstarch is a bland, gluten-free alternative to flour for frying, baking and for sauces and gravies. Rice Flour Bread and Buckwheat and Quinoa Bread are some gluten-free bread variants which you can bake at home using just a handful of ingredients.

5. It is widely used in Indo-Chinese cuisine to make various gravies, appetizers and soups like Paneer in Manchurian Sauce, Veg Crispy, Sweet Corn and Vegetable Soup, Kapi Cho Paneer.

6. Use it in cakes, cookies, pies, and a host of other sweet goods as well. You can make pancakes by mixing plain flour and cornflour. Enhance them by stuffing with a mixture to make Pancakes Stuffed with Baked Beans and Vegetables or French Style Baked Pancakes in Spinach and Tomato Sauce

7. Many cooks prefer using cornstarch as it imparts no additional flavour to foods.

8. A simple pudding can be made with bread, milk, cornstarch, and sugar. Bread and butter pudding is a popular British dessert that also happens to be a hot favourite at Mumbai’s Irani restaurants.

9. Do not freeze any cooked recipe that contains cornstarch.

10. Corn flour may be used as a substitute for arrowroot powder in specific recipes.

11. It may be used in preparation such as custard, cakes, coating cutlets before frying. Try your hands on these sinful desserts Caramel Custard, Semolina and Coconut Cake.

12. An addition of cornflour to batter provides a crunchy texture to deep-fried snacks like Capsicum Rings, Crispy Fried Corn. They also help in binding ingredients while making Herbed Maggi Fritters, Potato Nuggets, Paneer Cheese Balls.

How to store Cornflour, Cornstarch

• If stored in an airtight, dry container in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight, cornstarch will last for long.

• You may also put it in a plastic bag and refrigerate to improve the shelf life.

Health benefits of Cornflour, Cornstarch, Maize Starch

5 Merits of Cornflour

1. It’s gluten-free and can be consumed by those who cannot afford to stock wheat and its products like refined flour, semolina etc. in their pantry.

2. Organically corn are rich in antioxidant thus may contribute towards building your health by reducing inflammation.

3. Surprisingly cornflour has pretty good amount of fiber too. Each tbsp. gives approx. 1 g of fiber. The same rationality applies to protein too – 1 g per tbsp..

3 Demerits of Cornflour

1. Cornflour is full of calories and carbs like refined sugar, thus a barrier to weight reduction. Those on weight loss diet must definitely not reach out for it.

Click here to know is cornflour healthy?

Nutritive Information for Cornflour

1 tbsp of cornflour is about 15 grams

RDA stands for Recommended Daily Allowance.

Energy - 44 calories

Protein – 1.1 g

Carbohydrate – 9.1 g

Fat – 0.5 g

Fiber – 1.2 g

Vitamins:

0.17 mg of Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) = 10.5% of RDA ( (about 1.2 to 1.6 mg for men)

0.09 mg of Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) = 5% of RDA (about 1.4 to 1.9 mg for men)