• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Go Cook Yummy
  • Air Fryer
  • Browse Recipes
    • Easy Dinners
    • Traybakes
    • Slow Cooker
    • Baking
    • Sauces
    • Collections
  • Cooking Tips

Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour?

By Victoria · On: May 24, 22 · Last Modified: Jan 26, 23

4 shares
  • 1

Don’t have plain flour under your hands? Wondering if you can use cornflour instead? It may be not as easy as you may think. There are some things to which you should pay attention if you don’t want to ruin your ingredients and recipes. Let’s find out if you can substitute the cornflour in baking, frying, and sauce thickening.

Transparent glass with cornflour.

When you’re trying to substitute some ingredients, you should pay attention to the role of this ingredient in this specific recipe, their properties, the ratio of conversion, and the potential downsides of substituting this ingredient.

If you will pay attention to all of these aspects, you can easily substitute the plain flour with cornflour.

The most important thing is to understand why the plain flour was used in this specific recipe and if you’re ok with replacing it with cornflour.

So, let’s find out if you can use cornflour instead of plain flour.

In This Post: show
1 Difference Between Cornflour and Plain Flour?
2 Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Thickening?
3 Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Baking?
4 Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Frying?
5 Bottom Line

Difference Between Cornflour and Plain Flour?

Comparison between two wooden plates with corn flour and wheat flour.

So, can you use cornflour as a substitute for plain flour? Cornflour is made from corn, and doesn’t contain gluten, if you will use it in baking – the dough will not rise and have a high density.

As cornflour doesn’t have gluten which gives structure to the dough, you need to use other ingredients that are rich in protein such as eggs.

Best Recipes to Try in The Air Fryer:

  • BBQ Chicken Breast
  • Fried Eggs in Air Fryer
  • Air Fryer Yogurt Cake
  • Stuffed Mushrooms

On another side, plain flour is made from wheat, contains gluten, and is great for baking.

As they are different types of flours, they have different properties and different protein content. They also have different textures and structures.

Corn flour contains more fats while wheat flour is richer in protein, fibers, and vitamins.

Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Thickening?

Wooden spoon with thick white sauce with corn flour.

If you don’t have plain flour in your kitchen, or you’re looking for some gluten-free thickening agent for a soup, sauce, or stew, you can easily replace cornflour with plain flour.

Prop Tip: Keep in mind that cornflour has two times the thickening ability of flour. So, in case you will go with cornflour, you will need to use only half of the amount of cornflour instead of the amount of plain flour that was asked in the original recipe.

So, if the recipe is calling for 2 tablespoons of flour, use only 1 tablespoon of corn flour.

Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Baking?

Cornflour tart baked in a sauce pan.

Not really. If you’re planning to bake something and this dough needs to rise, I recommend picking another substitute.

Do You Love Your Air Fryer?

Level up your experience even more with these air fryer accessories!

You will not get the results you are looking for.

For baking goods raised with yeast, you need to pick a substitute that has gluten in the wheat to provide elasticity.

In other words, gluten is a protein that has unique properties of keeping the dioxide gas in its structure and therefore making the dough rise.

Quick Note: As the cornflour is gluten-free, it doesn’t have these properties and the dough will remain flat and dense.

However, you can easily substitute plain flour with cornflour in pancakes, waffles, or cookies.

The flavor may differ a little, but you may like it even more.

Can I Use Cornflour Instead of Plain Flour for Frying?

Chicken drumsticks coated in golden cornflour.

Cornflour is a better option for frying because it gives a lightly crispy crust and a nicer golden color to the dish and its cooks faster than all-purpose flour.

The plain flour needs more time to cook and may result in over-cooked dishes if you’re cooking something small like chicken nuggets.

Bottom Line

As you can find, if you know exactly why plain flour is used in a specific recipe, you can easily use cornflour instead of plain, no matter if we are speaking about baking, thickening, or frying.

We are participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
4 shares
  • 1
Previous Post: « Can I Use Heavy Whipping Cream Instead of Heavy Cream for Pasta?
Next Post: What Can I Use Instead of Heavy Cream for Alfredo Sauce? »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Happy to Have you there!

Hey, I'm Victoria, the blogger behind the Go Cook Yummy. I'm running this blog with my husband, Alex, where we share our family recipes that actually work. Read more about us...

Recipes to Try:

Close top look of air fryer zucchini chips with white sauce.

Air Fryer Parmesan Zucchini Chips with Garlic

Close look of 3 cinnamon rolls sparkled with orange zest and decorated with mint leaves.

Air Fryer Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls

Broccoli with red hot pepper and sesame seeds on a white plate.

Spicy Keto Broccoli in Air Fryer

Close look of chicken skewers on a plate.

Air Fryer Chicken Skewers (Kebabs)

Footer

Follow Us:

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok

Copyright © 2023 GoCooYummy • Stories • Contact Us • Privacy Policy