What to Use Instead of Cornstarch (Swaps and Ratios for Every Recipe)

All-purpose flour is the cornstarch substitute most kitchens already have. Use 2 tablespoons of flour for every 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, whisk it into cold liquid before it goes near the heat, and simmer for a few minutes so it loses its raw taste. That works for gravy, soup, stew and most sauces.

If you have them, potato starch, tapioca starch and arrowroot are closer matches, because like cornstarch they’re pure starch. They make glossier, clearer sauces than flour and they’re gluten-free. The catch is that each one behaves a little differently with heat, acid and dairy, so the best swap depends on what you’re making.

One more thing before the chart: if you compare sources, you’ll notice the ratios don’t always agree. America’s Test Kitchen, The Kitchn and Healthline each give slightly different amounts for tapioca and arrowroot. Starches vary by brand and grind, and “thick enough” is partly taste. The ranges below show where the trusted sources land. Start at the low end and add more if you need it.

Cornstarch Substitute Ratios

Amounts are for replacing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.

Substitute	How much to use	Gluten-free?	Best for	Watch out for
All-purpose flour	2 tablespoons	No	Gravy, stew, soup, pan sauce	Cloudy finish; needs simmering; clumps if added dry
Wondra (instant flour)	1½ teaspoons	No	Last-minute gravy, pan sauce	Contains wheat
Potato starch	1 to 1½ tablespoons	Yes	Soups, gravy, frying	Breaks down with long cooking
Tapioca starch	1 to 2 tablespoons	Yes	Fruit pie, sauces, gluten-free baking	Loses power if boiled too long
Arrowroot powder	2 teaspoons to 2 tablespoons	Yes	Fruit sauces, glazes, pies	Slimy with dairy; dislikes reheating
Rice flour	2 tablespoons	Yes	Clear soups, puddings, shortbread, breading	Can taste slightly chalky if coarse
Xanthan gum	A pinch, built up slowly	Yes	Low-carb sauces, gluten-free baking	Slimy if overused

Sources for these ratios: America’s Test Kitchen (flour, Wondra, potato starch, tapioca, arrowroot, xanthan), The Kitchn (flour, rice flour, potato starch, tapioca, Wondra, arrowroot) and Healthline (flour, arrowroot, potato starch, tapioca, rice flour).

What Can You Use to Thicken Gravy or a Stir-Fry Sauce?

This is the most common reason people look for a substitute, and it’s also the easiest job to cover.

Flour: the pantry default

Flour has about half the thickening power of cornstarch, which is why you use twice as much. Fine Cooking’s Nicole Rees, quoted in The Washington Post, calls flour “a go-to for a reason in gravies.” It gives a rich, opaque sauce and reheats well, which is handy for leftovers.

Two rules keep it smooth:

1. Never sprinkle dry flour into hot liquid. America’s Test Kitchen warns it will clump. Whisk it into a few tablespoons of cold water or stock first, or cook it in butter or oil for a minute before adding liquid (a roux).
2. Simmer it. Flour needs a few minutes at a gentle bubble to cook out its raw, pasty taste. ATK also notes that flour darkens and burns faster than pure starch, so keep the heat moderate. If a roux does scorch, our guide to cleaning stainless steel pans gets the pan back.

Wondra: flour that acts like starch

Wondra is a finely milled, precooked “instant” flour sold in a shaker can. America’s Test Kitchen says you need only half as much Wondra as cornstarch by volume, and it dissolves more easily and won’t burn as fast as regular flour. If you make pan sauces often, it’s worth keeping a can around.

Potato starch: the closest match for a glossy sauce

Potato starch is what you want for a stir-fry sauce that looks like it came from a restaurant. ATK and The Kitchn both suggest 1 to 1½ tablespoons per tablespoon of cornstarch. It gives what The Kitchn calls a “silky, creamy mouthfeel.”

It also thickens at a lower temperature than cornstarch. The Washington Post puts its gelling point around 136 to 150°F, while cornstarch needs to get close to boiling. That’s why ATK recommends adding potato starch late in cooking: it thickens fast, and long simmering breaks it down.

If you’re making something like lo mein or chow mein, where the sauce goes in during the last minute of cooking, potato starch is an easy one-for-one-ish swap.

What Works in Fruit Pie Filling?

Pies are a different challenge. The filling has to thicken in the oven, hold a clean slice once it cools, and cope with acidic fruit juice.

Thickener	Result in pie	Notes
Instant ClearJel	Clear, juicy, not gummy	King Arthur’s co-winner, alongside its Pie Filling Enhancer
Cornstarch (for comparison)	Effective, slightly cloudy and a bit sticky	The baseline you’re replacing
All-purpose flour	Faintly starchy, cloudier	Works, and you already have it
Quick-cooking tapioca	Slightly cloudy	Let filling sit 15 to 30 minutes before baking
Tapioca starch	Glossy, clear	ATK notes it stays supple longer than cornstarch
Arrowroot	Clear gel that doesn’t weep with acid	Best in pies served at room temperature, not reheated

King Arthur Baking compared thickeners in fruit pies and named Instant ClearJel a co-winner (alongside its own Pie Filling Enhancer), calling the result juicy without being gummy or starchy, and clear enough to let the fruit color show. Instant ClearJel is a modified cornstarch, so it’s not a fix if you’re avoiding corn, but it is a solid upgrade if you just prefer a clearer filling. It’s sold by King Arthur and on Amazon.

If you’re avoiding corn entirely, tapioca starch and arrowroot are the best bets. The Kitchn says arrowroot “sets a beautiful gel in pie fillings” and “doesn’t weep when mixed with acid,” which matters with berries and rhubarb. The Washington Post describes tapioca as giving fruit juices “a glossy shine.”

Flour works in a pinch, and King Arthur found every thickener it compared, flour included, produced a filling that held together when sliced. It’s just a little cloudier and more starchy-tasting.

If you bake often in a small space, our guide to the best bakeware for small kitchens covers pie plates that don’t hog a cabinet, and this rundown of compact baking sheet and pan sizes explains which dimensions still fit a small oven.

Pudding, Custard and Anything With Dairy

Cornstarch is the classic thickener for stovetop puddings and pastry cream. Your substitute choices narrow here.

• Skip arrowroot. America’s Test Kitchen tasters found an arrowroot-thickened dairy pudding “slimy.” ATK’s advice is to avoid arrowroot in anything that calls for dairy.
• Skip flour. ATK doesn’t recommend flour for puddings either.
• Try rice flour or tapioca. The Kitchn says rice flour performs well in puddings at 2 tablespoons per tablespoon of cornstarch, and it lists tapioca starch as good for puddings too.
• Lean on egg yolks. Many custards thicken mostly from egg yolks, gently cooked. If a recipe uses both cornstarch and yolks, the yolks carry a lot of the load. A double boiler gives you the gentle heat that keeps yolks from scrambling.

If you’re also short on milk, our guide to the best substitutes for whole milk explains which swaps set up properly in puddings. For dairy-free versions, see the best coconut milk substitutes.

For Frying and Crispy Coatings

Cornstarch is also used in batters and dredges because it fries up crisp and light. Two substitutes do the same job well.

• Potato starch is a pure starch like cornstarch, so it can take cornstarch’s place in a dredge for fried chicken or tofu.
• Rice flour makes a thin, crackly crust. America’s Test Kitchen says rice flour can stand in for cornstarch in equal amounts for breading.

All-purpose flour works too, but the crust will be heavier and browner. For air-fried food, from wings to frozen french fries in an air fryer, a light, even coating and a thin film of oil matter more than which starch you pick. Our guide to the best oil for an air fryer covers which oils handle the heat, and the same crisping ideas apply when you reheat chicken wings.

Replacing Cornstarch in Baking

In cakes and cookies, cornstarch usually isn’t there to thicken. It’s there to make things tender by lowering the protein in the flour.

Homemade cake flour

America’s Test Kitchen’s cake flour substitute is 7/8 cup all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch for each cup of cake flour. The cornstarch dilutes the protein so the cake bakes up softer and finer.

No cornstarch? Potato starch and arrowroot are also pure starches, so they should play the same role, though ATK’s formula was written for cornstarch. If you have neither, you can use all-purpose flour alone and accept a slightly sturdier crumb, or buy a box of cake flour if you bake cakes often.

Shortbread and tender cookies

ATK says rice flour can replace cornstarch one for one in shortbread. You may notice a faint chalkiness right out of the oven, which fades as the cookies cool. For more on baking evenly, see how to bake cookies in a convection oven.

Gluten-free baking

Tapioca starch is a common ingredient in gluten-free flour blends. ATK notes it’s pure starch from cassava root and doesn’t retrograde (firm up and stale) as quickly as cornstarch, which helps baked goods stay soft. Small amounts of xanthan gum add structure that gluten would normally provide.

If you’re setting up a baking corner with limited space, these space-saving baking tool essentials and tips on baking in a small kitchen without extra counter space can help, and our picks for the best small ovens and toaster ovens for baking suit a corner that can’t hold a full range.

Gluten-Free and Low-Carb Swaps

If you’re avoiding gluten, flour and Wondra are out. Potato starch, tapioca, arrowroot and rice flour all work, as covered above.

If you’re cutting carbs, starches aren’t much help, since they’re carbohydrates by definition. Healthline lists these lower-carb thickeners:

• Xanthan gum: very strong. America’s Test Kitchen suggests starting with “barely a pinch” and blending it in with an immersion blender to prevent clumps. It’s flavorless and freezes well, but too much turns slimy.
• Guar gum: start around ¼ teaspoon and build up slowly.
• Glucomannan: about ¼ teaspoon for every 2 teaspoons of cornstarch, mixed with cold water first.
• Ground flaxseed: 1 tablespoon mixed with 4 tablespoons of water replaces about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. The texture is a little gritty, so it suits stews more than smooth sauces.
• Psyllium husk: start with ½ teaspoon and add more as needed.

Gums thicken almost instantly and don’t need heat, which makes them useful for cold sauces and dressings. If you don’t have an immersion blender yet, our roundup of the best immersion blenders is a good starting point.

Thickening Without Any Starch

Sometimes you don’t need a substitute at all.

• Reduce it. Simmer a sauce uncovered and let the water evaporate. It concentrates flavor as it thickens. A wide sauté pan reduces much faster than a deep pot because there’s more surface area.
• Blend some of it. For soups with beans, potatoes or vegetables, purée a cup or two and stir it back in. A blender does this better than a food processor, as our look at the difference between a food processor and a blender explains.
• Use what’s already there. A spoonful of mashed potato (our guide to how long potatoes last helps you keep some on hand), a handful of rice cooked in a rice cooker blended into soup, or a little grated cheese in a cream sauce will all add body.
• Add butter at the end. Whisking cold butter into a pan sauce off the heat gives it a glossy, slightly thicker finish.

How to Add Any Thickener Without Lumps

Most thickening problems come from how the thickener goes in, not which one you pick.

1. Make a slurry. Stir the starch or flour into an equal amount of cold water, broth or wine until smooth. Cold liquid lets the granules separate before they swell.
2. Add it gradually. Pour the slurry into the simmering liquid while stirring or whisking. Add half, wait a minute, then decide whether you need the rest.
3. Heat it enough. Cornstarch and flour need to get close to a boil to thicken fully. Tapioca and potato starch thicken at lower temperatures, so they don’t need a hard boil.
4. Stop stirring so hard once it’s thick. The Washington Post notes that too much stirring can break down thickened mixtures like custards.

For a big batch of soup or stew, a sturdy stockpot with a lid and a flat whisk make all of this easier. If you need to convert a recipe’s liquid first, here’s how many ounces are in a quart.

Why Did My Sauce Go Thin?

What happened	Likely cause	What to do next time
Tapioca sauce thinned out	Boiled too long	Add it near the end; The Kitchn warns long boiling weakens it
Potato starch sauce broke down	Cooked too long	Add it at the very end and serve soon
Arrowroot sauce went thin or stringy after reheating	Arrowroot doesn’t like to be reheated	Use it in dishes you serve right away or cold
Flour gravy tastes pasty	Not cooked long enough	Simmer a few more minutes
Gummy, slimy texture	Too much gum or arrowroot, or arrowroot with dairy	Use less; switch to potato starch or rice flour for dairy
Lumps	Dry thickener hit hot liquid	Always make a slurry or roux first

Storing Substitutes When You Have No Pantry

Starches keep for a long time as long as they stay dry and sealed. Decant them into airtight food storage containers so they don’t pick up moisture or pantry pests. You don’t need all of them: a bag of flour plus one pure starch, like potato starch, covers almost every recipe that calls for cornstarch.

If shelf space is tight, see how to organize a small kitchen with no pantry and these small kitchen cabinet organization ideas. A shared container for all your baking starches fits neatly on one shelf.

Stock One Backup and You’re Covered

Now that you know which thickener does what, the next useful skill is controlling heat while you thicken. Our guide to using a double boiler covers the gentle, even heat that keeps puddings, custards and delicate sauces from scorching or splitting.

Related Guides

• Best Substitutes for Whole Milk
• Best Coconut Milk Substitutes
• How to Use a Double Boiler
• How to Use an Immersion Blender
• Lo Mein vs Chow Mein
• Space-Saving Baking Tool Essentials
• How to Bake in a Small Kitchen Without Extra Counter Space
• Compact Baking Sheet and Pan Sizes for Small Kitchens
• How to Bake Cookies in a Convection Oven

Frequently Asked Questions

What can I use instead of cornstarch to thicken sauce?

All-purpose flour is the easiest swap: use 2 tablespoons of flour for every tablespoon of cornstarch, and whisk it with cold water or cook it in fat first so it doesn't clump. For a clearer, glossier sauce, use potato starch at 1 to 1½ tablespoons per tablespoon of cornstarch, stirred in near the end of cooking. Tapioca and arrowroot also work in sauces you'll serve right away.

Can I use flour instead of cornstarch?

Yes, for most thickening jobs. Flour has roughly half the thickening power of cornstarch, so use twice as much. It makes sauces opaque instead of glossy and needs a few minutes of simmering to lose its raw taste. America's Test Kitchen advises against flour in puddings, and it's not gluten-free, so skip it if you're cooking for someone with celiac disease.

Is arrowroot the same as cornstarch?

No, but it does a similar job. Arrowroot is a starch from a tropical root. It thickens into a clear, glossy gel and holds up well to acidic ingredients like fruit juice. It has weak spots, though: America's Test Kitchen found it turns slimy in dairy-based puddings, and The Kitchn notes it doesn't like being reheated after it sets. Use it for fruit sauces and pies.

What is the healthiest substitute for cornstarch?

If you mean lower in carbs, ground flaxseed and gums are the usual picks. Healthline suggests 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed mixed with 4 tablespoons of water in place of about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch, though the texture is a little gritty. Xanthan gum, guar gum and glucomannan thicken in tiny amounts, starting around a pinch to ¼ teaspoon. Add them slowly, because too much turns slimy.

Can I use baking powder or baking soda instead of cornstarch?

No. Baking powder and baking soda are leaveners that make batter rise; they don't thicken liquids. Baking powder does contain a little cornstarch to keep it dry, but not nearly enough to thicken anything, and adding extra would make food taste soapy or bitter. For thickening, reach for flour, potato starch, tapioca or arrowroot instead.