Can I use tapioca pearls for thickening?
A friend of mine went shopping in an Asian market. I asked them to bring me tapioca starch. They brought me a package of small tapioca pearls.
Is there any way to use the pearls as I would use the starch? For example, can I grind them with mortar and pestle?
If I can't use them for thickening, what are they good for, besides bubble tea?
Best Answer
The problem with using the non-ground pearls is that they don't always fully dissolve. Cook's Thesaurus indicates that they can be pulverized or ground in a grinder or by mortar and pestle and used similarly to the starch. However, there are pearls which are instant and those that are not. With instant tapioca you can substitute 1:1, with regular tapioca pearls, pulverized, it would be 2:1.
As for What are they good for?, they are good as a thickening agent assuming that you are okay with little gelatinous balls in whatever you are making. Rice and tapioca puddings spring to mind; there are uses of it in curries and stews for its thickening prowess; also it can be used as a gluten free thickening agent in place of flour.
If you run out of corn starch or arrow root you can also turn to the pulverized stuff. Same rules apply; slurry 1 Tbsp in cold water per 1 cup liquid to thicken. However, do not bring to a boil or you will end up over-cooking the starch.
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Can I use tapioca pearls instead of tapioca flour?
Use half as much tapioca starch/flour in place of the instant tapioca called for. Tapioca pearls can also be ground into tapioca flour and used as a substitute.Can you use tapioca pearls instead of cornstarch?
You need to use tapioca starch/flour. These are the same thing, but you definitely cannot substitute cornstarch for tapioca starch. The boba will not form properly. Heat it up: when heating up your water and dark brown sugar, make sure the liquid gets heated enough so that the tapioca starch can dissolve.Can you grind up tapioca pearls into flour?
A: Most sauces and gravies are thickened with some kind of starch. The most common are flour and cornstarch, though potato starch, arrowroot and tapioca flour also work well.How to Cook Tapioca Pearls | Cooking and Preparing Tapioca Pearls for Milk Tea | Important Tips
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