There are many options when choosing gluten free/casein free thickeners to use in sauces, gravies, and baking.  This series of articles will discuss a variety of choices and Meadowsweet would like to invite you to join in the discussion by posting comments about what has worked in your kitchen.  We’d like to talk about arrowroot first because it is a popular product and works very well in recipes that are both gluten and casein free.  In fact, my research shows that it does NOT work well with dairy (for milk-based gravies, you’ll want to choose different thickeners which we’ll discuss in later articles).

Arrowroot is derived from the roots of a tropical plant. Since it is less gritty than rice flour, some cooks use it exclusively to  replace the flour that recipes require. Many people also prefer to use it as a thickener over cornstarch because it blends better with the flavors of recipes.  Note that when used as a cornstarch replacement, you will need to use more arrowroot.

It appears that arrowroot’s best use may be in baking when it is combined with other flours.  Add it to baked goods with gluten-free flours like buckwheat to help bind the flour. Try Arrowroot for something different today!