How can I thin a sauce that has too much tapioca flour
I bought a half gallon of picante sauce, and it was way too thin. I put in tapioca flour to thicken it, but added too much (when I warmed it up to blend in the flour).
Now it is so thick and jelly-like that it won't pour out of the container without the help of a fork or spoon. It also does not lend itself to chip dipping. Is there a way to thin that out and return the consistency back to somewhat normal? A different site talked about adding tomato juice to thin tomato-meat sauces out.
Best Answer
There are a couple of things you could try to partially recover the sauce, but my feeling is that none will have very satisfactory results.
The reason is that starch gelatinization is an irreversible process. The problem is even worst for tapioca, which is rich in amylopectin in comparison with other starches like potato and corn, richer in amylose. Amylopectin is the responsible for the characteristic 'gluey' texture and translucent colour of gelified tapioca (and also asian sticky rice) starch, and is the driving agent of the gelatinization process. Starches which are richer in amylopectin form stronger gels. There are a couple of factors that could have helped slowying gelatinization, like for example adding acid to the water. But the issue is that once the starch has been heated for enough time and the gel formed, acid won't help you go back.
There are some potential fancy solutions like using amylase to digest the gel into shorter sugars. Amylase is present in your saliva, but you really don't want to spit in your sauce because the other stuff in your saliva will likely lead to fermentation and spoilage of the sauce.
Another potential solution but laborious solution would be trying to dehydrate your mixture and rehydrate it avoiding heating. For example you could bake it in the oven under low heat until the mix gets dry and hard. Then you process it into a blender with water avoiding to overheat it. In Brazil they use tapioca gum to make pancakes, and by personal experience cooking these for two long make it crumbly again. But I cannot guarantee you this is going to lead you to satisfactory results.
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Quick Answer about "How can I thin a sauce that has too much tapioca flour"
Another potential solution but laborious solution would be trying to dehydrate your mixture and rehydrate it avoiding heating. For example you could bake it in the oven under low heat until the mix gets dry and hard. Then you process it into a blender with water avoiding to overheat it.What can you do if you put too much flour in sauce?
Solution: If your gravy is too thick, that just means it contains a bit too much flour. Thin it with additional stock; you could use water instead, but then you'd be watering down the flavor.How do you dissolve tapioca flour?
To use tapioca with fruit pie, mix it gently with the fruit and let it sit for 10 to 20 minutes, allowing the fruit's juice begin softening the granules. This is especially important if using pearl tapioca, to help the granules completely dissolve.How do you fix starchy sauce?
Gently heat your sauce in a pot, stirring carefully and watch it thicken as it nears boiling temperature. You will most likely have enough starch left in the mix to reach the desired thickness.How do you un thicken a sauce?
If it's too thick. Like a sauce that is too thin, a dish that is too thick is a simple fix! All you need to do is add more of the recipe's cooking liquid \u2014 such as wine, broth or cream.How to Thicken Sauce with Flour
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