Tips
You can also thicken liquids with flour, arrowroot, roux, and potato starch.
Warnings
Be careful when heating up the mixture. Do not touch it while it’s boiling.
About This Article
This article was co-authored by JoAnna Minneci. JoAnna Minneci is a Professional Chef based in the Nashville, Tennessee area. With more than 18 years of experience, Chef JoAnna specializes in teaching others how to cook through private cooking lessons, team-building events, and wellness and nutrition classes.
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How Cornstarch Works
The cornstarch molecules are like little sponges. They soak up water and expand as they do so. The same thing happens with any starch. It's the same way rice or oatmeal or polenta thicken and expand in volume when simmered.
How to Use Cornstarch as a Thickener
Cornstarch imparts a glossy sheen to the liquids it thickens, so it tends to be used more in sweet sauces and pie fillings than in savory sauces and gravies. Still, it works really well, and it's easy to use:
Cornstarch Alternatives
Something to remember when you're using cornstarch: If your sauce is quite acidic (like maybe it's tomato-based), the acid will cause cornstarch to lose some of its effectiveness as a thickener. In that case, you can substitute arrowroot or tapioca starch.
Additional Uses
Cornstarch's thickening properties can help you out in other ways, too. Suppose you're making a stir-fry, and it's become watery. That often happens when your wok or pan isn't hot enough. All the liquid from the veggies and meat leaks out, causing the food to steam rather than fry. You could let it reduce, but you'll just overcook your veggies.
Why Thicken Milk?
There are plenty of reasons why people may choose to alter their milk. One of the most common things that people do, particularly in cooking, is thicken the milk to reach a desired texture or consistency. This is most commonly found in custards, although it is done in many other parts of cooking.
What Will You Need?
What you will need to thicken your milk is also going to be dependent on what you are doing with the milk. If you are thickening the milk with xanthan gum, then you are certainly not going to need any eggs to help you with this process.
So How Do You Do it?
The way that people go about thickening their milk will depend heavily on the reason why it needs to be thickened and what kind of recipe the meal is going to go toward.
Overview
- Combine one tablespoon of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of cold water. Begin by pouring one tablespoon (14.18 g) of cornstarch and 1/4 cup (59 mL) of water into a cup or bowl. This mixture will create a medium-thick sauce.[1] X Expert Source JoAnna Minneci Professional Chef Expert Interview. 23 November 2021. If you need a thicker or thinner mixture, you shoul…
- Whisk the mixture. [3] X Expert Source JoAnna Minneci Professional Chef Expert Interview. 2…
Ingredients
Tips
Things You’ll Need
- One of the easiest ways to thicken milk is by boiling it on the stove. As it heats up, the liquid parts of the milk will start to evaporate. Remember to keep stirring the whole time! If you want to make condensed milk, add sugar before you heat it up. Once the milk has thickened, you can eat it on toast, cook with it, or store it for a few days in ...
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- Boiling Milk to Make Khoya
2 cups (470 ml) of whole milk - 2/3 cups (85 g) of white sugar
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