Corn Flour vs. Arrowroot

The difference between corn flour and arrowroot

Both corn flour and arrowroot are used thickening agents, but they look different from each other and are used in different ways. There is also a difference in where they come from. Corn flour is quite common, but arrowroot may be new to most people.

What is corn flour?

Corn flour is a common product found in kitchen cupboards under the name of corn starch. It comes from the heart of the corn kernel, which is ground up into a fine white powder. When you mix corn flour with water it forms an opaque and cloudy liquid. Although it can be used for thickening soup and roux for gravy, it is not a substitute for flour. When it is used in baking recipes, you usually use both corn flour and regular flour.

What is arrowroot?

Arrowroot comes from the roots of the plant of the same name and is a starch. It is used as a thickening agent for puddings, jams and jellies. There is no taste to arrowroot and it has no color so the only thing that it does is thicken the food. It is generally used in the preparation of food where you don’t want to use anything that will change the color or the taste.

Difference between corn flour and arrowroot

Corn flour comes from ground corn kernel and arrowroot comes from the roots of the arrowroot plant. The main use of both is to thicken liquids that are used for food. However, arrowroot is used for pudding and jelly, and corn flour is used for soup and roux for gravy. Corn flower turns water opaque and cloudy but arrowroot is tasteless and colorless. Corn flour is the more widely used of the two because it is so easily available.

Summary

1. Corn flour is also known as corn starch. It comes from the kernels of corn that are ground to make a fine white powder. It makes water cloudy and opaque when it you mix the two. It is used to thicken soups and sauces.
2. Arrowroot comes from the root of the arrowroot plant and is used as a thickening agent for pudding and jelly. It has no taste or color and does not change the look of water when you mix the two together.