Our topic this week for What Is It? Wednesday is Tapioca Flour. Whether mixed into baked goods or used as a thickening agent for soups and sauces, this ingredient can be used in a variety of different recipes. This ingredient is a tricky one to understand and there is a lot of confusing information about it online. We're going to do our best to clear it up, but if we missed something or you still have burning questions, please leave them in the comments and we'll get you an answer.
What Is Tapioca Flour?
Tapioca flour is made from the crushed pulp of the cassava root (pictured below), a woody shrub native to South America and the Caribbean. Even though they originate from the same plant, cassava flour and tapioca flour are in fact different. Cassava flour uses the whole root while tapioca flour only uses the starchy pulp. Like other starches, tapioca flour is a very fine, white powder that works well in gluten free baking. It can replace cornstarch as a thickener for pies, gravies, pudding, dough and sauces and aids in creating a crisp crust and chewy texture in baking. It is most often used in the Brazilian treat Pão de Queijo (pictured below), a light, puffy cheese roll. Tapioca flour is becoming increasingly common in paleo diet recipes, as well.
Is Tapioca Starch the Same as Tapioca Flour? Is There a Difference Between the Two?
There are quite a variety of different tapioca products on the market. It is common for tapioca flour to sometimes be called tapioca starch. Our tapioca flour is the same thing as tapioca starch, however you need to be aware that there is a third choice called tapioca flour/starch often found in stores that cater to a Caribbean and South American clientele. This type of flour/starch is typically sold as cassava flour, but it will not work the same as our tapioca flour. To best avoid confusion, if you need to use an ingredient for gluten free baking, we recommend sticking with something that is clearly marked as tapioca starch or tapioca flour and steering clear of cassava flour.
What About Modified Tapioca Starch?
This is an entirely different ballgame of starch. Modified starch works well in gluten free baking, but it is not the same thing as our tapioca flour and they cannot be used interchangeably. Expandex produces this type of modified starch.
How Is Tapioca Flour Made?
Essentially, cassava root is peeled, washed and chopped. Then it is rasped (finely shredded) and the resulting pulp is washed, spun, and washed until the mixture is primarily pure starch and water. The starch is then dried. We recognize the hazards of under-processed cassava root and our product has been processed in an appropriate manner to make the product harmless.
Why Use Tapioca Flour?
Tapioca flour is a wonderful thickener that is superior to arrowroot starch and potato starch. It provides a crispy crust and chewy texture in gluten free baked goods. It also serves as an effective thickening agent for other recipes such as homemade pudding, cookie dough, sauces and gravies. Some people choose tapioca because they cannot eat corn or potatoes for health reasons and tapioca flour is a wonderful alternative.
Tips for Using Tapioca Flour to Replace Other Ingredients:
- Tapioca Flour for Cornstarch in Baking: Replace 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons tapioca flour.
- Tapioca Flour for All Purpose Flour in Thickening: Replace 1 for 1.
- Tapioca Flour for Instant Tapioca Pearls: For every 1 tablespoon of quick-cooking tapioca pearls use 1 1/2 tablespoons of tapioca flour. Mix the tapioca flour with any dry sugar in an uncooked pie filling or make a slurry with a small amount of the liquid before heating in a pre-cooked pie filling, then slowly add the slurry back into the pie filling and continue to cook the filling at a simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the cloudiness from the tapioca flour has turned transparent.
Is Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour Gluten Free?
Yes, tapioca flour is naturally free from gluten. At Bob's Red Mill we take it a step further by producing it in our gluten free facility and batch testing it for gluten in our quality control laboratory.
Is Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour Organic?
No, our tapioca flour is not certified organic.
Is Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour Vegan?
Yes, our tapioca flour is suitable for a vegan diet.
Is Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour Sulfite-Free?
Yes, our tapioca flour is sulfite-free.
Is Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour Pregelatinized and What Does That Even Mean?
No, our tapioca flour is not pregelatinized. Pregelatinized means that the starch has been cooked and dried, making it ideal for quick thickening. This process is used for things like tapioca pearls to create instant puddings, salad dressings, pie fillings, etc. Grinding tapioca pearls will not produce tapioca flour. However, you can replace instant tapioca pearls with tapioca flour. If you need tips for doing so, see below.
Our Favorite Recipes Using Tapioca Flour:
- Chocolate Marble Cupcakes from Jeanette's Healthy Living
- Blueberry Swirl Muffins from Silvana's Kitchen
- Soft Pretzel Bites from Allergy Free Pantry
- Non-Dairy 'Cheesy' Rolls from The Non-Dairy Queen
- Red Velvet Cupcakes from Carol Fenster
- Easy Brazilian Cheese Bread from Simply Recipes
- Soft Gluten Free Wraps from Gluten-Free on a Shoestring
I made a cassava bread this weekend and the recipe called for xanthan gum (1/2 tsp for 400grs of cooked cassava + 2 cups of rice flour), so was my first contact with this item, anyway, the taste of the bread was a little bitter and I am thinking if was caused by the xanthan gum.
So, can you tell me if the use of xanthan gum can modified the taste of the food?
Thanks for your help.
Meiri
Btw, in the past I've bought Org Kamut cereal (hot). I haven't seen it in the stores. Do you still carry this product? I would like to order 2 cases if you do.
At Bob’s Red Mill, we have made a commitment to purchase only non-GMO grains. All of our products are made from ingredients that were grown from identity-preserved, non-GMO seed. You can read our full non-GMO policy here: http://blog.bobsredmill.com/featured-articles/update-our-non-gmo-policy/ For more information about our GMO policy, please call our customer service team: 1-800-349-2173. I do not think this would be considered a modified starch. Yes, we do still carry the Kamut cereal. You can order it on our website at bobsredmill.com or by calling the number above.
From what I can see from our supplier, it looks like they use suflites in the processing of potato starch and the resulting product has less than 10 parts per million. So I guess that means, yes, there is a very tiny amount of them in the potato starch.
I have a concern, I just read your response that your potato starch supplier uses sulfites during the process. This is alarming as I am severly allergic to Sulfites. Can you tell me if any other your other products also use sulfites in the process. I need to know which ones to avoid.
Are you able to give us a call at 800-349-2173 to get assistance with this inquiry?
Our Tapioca Flour should work fine in either application.
Yes, cassava starch and tapioca flour are the same thing. Cassava flour, however, is a different thing and would not be as starchy.
Thanks so much!
No our tapioca pearls are not produced in our gluten free facility or tested for gluten. They are produced on shared lines with gluten-containing items. We do use Good Manufacturing Practices and clean lines between runs, but there is some chance of cross contact with gluten.
Our tapioca flour is probably fine, but it's not a cosmetic ingredient, so I can't really say that it would work well as an alternative to face powder.
2 Tablespoonfuls of tapioca granules and 4 Tablespoonfuls of cornstarch for thickener. Can I use my tapioca flour to replace both granules and cornstarch and if yes, how much should I use? Thank you for your help.
Denise Trombley
[email protected]
i heard that flour is a raw product, and can have e.coli in it and wondered if tapioca flour is considered a raw ingredient too. thanks.
I was wondering if 'Tapioca Flour' and 'Tapioca Starch' are truly multi-purposeful? I am going to be creating homemade tapioca pearls for a bubble tea recipe and the main ingredient called for is 'tapioca starch.' I would prefer to use Red Mill's tapioca flour, but am hesitant that the pearls would become a completely different texture after boiling in hot water for a few minutes.
Thank you for the clarification in advance!
Thankyou
Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour
I want to bake the pie tomorrow.
Will refrigerating the fruit mix overnight affect the thickening qualifies of the tapioca?
Your site has lots of good info. Thank you.
You could also use Arrowroot Starch, Chia Seeds, or Flaxseed Meal to thicken liquids.