Glutinous rice flour, also known as sweet rice or sticky rice flour, comes from the same plant family as regular rice.
But as an extra component called amylopectin A that makes it sticky to the touch and easy to mold?
However, it’s most commonly used in Asian cuisine to make mochi rice dumplings. And other rice-based desserts like buns, cakes, and bubble tea drinks.
But where can you find the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour when it’s time to bake bread or make gluten-free pasta?
What is Glutinous Rice Flour?
Glutinous rice flour is a type of flour that is made from glutinous rice. It is mainly used in desserts and baking to give them an easily chewy texture.
However, Glutinous rice flour has a consistency between cornstarch and all-purpose flour. But it doesn’t have quite the same flavor as cornstarch.
The difference between glutinous rice and regular rice is that the former contains amylopectin A, which makes it sticky when wet.
Also, Glutenous rice can be used by itself or in combination with other ingredients, such as soy sauce, sugar, salt, eggs, water, and oil.
Best Substitutes for Glutinous Rice Flour
1. Chapssal Flour
Glutinous rice flour is a powdery, starchy substance made of white rice that is used in many Asian dishes. It is often used in desserts and other foods to add texture or as a thickener.
In the United States, it can be difficult to find at grocery stores or Asian markets. Moreso, several substitutes can be used instead of glutinous rice flour.
The best substitutes for glutinous rice flour listed below may not taste exactly the same as the dish would with glutinous rice flour.
However, they can be substituted in most recipes with some minor adjustments. A one-to-one substitution is the simplest way to use chapssal flour as a substitute for glutinous rice flour in recipes.
For example, chapssal can replace glutenous rice flour. Additional ingredients might need to be added, such as egg whites or eggs. Because chapssal does not contain eggs as glutenous rice flour does.
2. Chickpea Flour
Chickpea flour is an excellent substitute for glutinous rice flour because it has the same texture, taste, and protein content.
It can be used in sweet or savory dishes and is often used as an egg replacement in vegan cooking. Chickpea flour can also be found in many grocery stores as garbanzo bean flour or besan.
Gluten-free baking has become more and more popular in recent years, especially because of the rise of people with food allergies.
One common substitute for glutinous rice flour is chickpea flour. Therefore, chickpea flour can be a good substitute for glutinous rice flour.
If you are looking for a lighter flavor or need to avoid gluten. The texture will change with this substitution.
Moreso, some things can be done to make your work better in your recipe. There are things to know about chickpea flour as one of the substitutes for glutinous rice flour.
Moreover, chickpea flour tends to have a more gritty texture than glutinous rice flour. So adding more oil or liquid may help make it smoother.
3. Wheat Flour
If you are looking for one of the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour, Wheat flour is an excellent substitute in cooking.
It is especially good in desserts, giving them a nice chewy texture. If you don’t have wheat flour on hand, you can use barley or oat flour as substitutes.
Moreover, they are both gluten-free and work well in most dishes. Use either of these flours to make bread, muffins, pancakes, biscuits, and other baked goods.
And don’t forget that they also work as a thickening agent when it comes to gravies, sauces, and soups.
4. Soy Flour
Gluten-free and vegan, soy flour is an excellent substitute for glutinous rice flour in many cooking and baking recipes. Soy flour has a stronger, nuttier taste than rice flour.
But it can be used as the primary ingredient in baked goods like cakes, bread, cookies, and brownies.
However, use your favorite gluten-free recipe or bake with soy flour. See if you like it before investing in a large bag of the stuff.
Some people also use coconut or almond milk instead of regular milk when baking with gluten-free alternatives to rice flour.
5. Tapioca Flour
There are many best substitutes for glutinous rice flour. One popular substitute is tapioca flour, made from cassava root starch.
Tapioca flour has a similar appearance to glutinous rice flour, and it can be used to thicken soups and stews.
6. Potato Starch
Potato starch is one of the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour. It has a similar texture and binding properties to flour.
And can be used in many baked goods, such as bread, muffins, cakes, and cookies. Therefore, it’s also a healthier alternative because it is gluten-free and contains no fat or cholesterol.
7. Mochiko Flour
Mochiko flour is an excellent substitute for glutinous rice flour. It can be used in both sweet and savory dishes. And the results are just as good as those made with glutinous rice flour.
Also, mochiko flour can be found in several Asian markets or online. But if you’re unable to find it. You can also make it home by combining cornstarch and rice flour in equal proportions.
Moreover, if you don’t want to go through the hassle of making your substitute, then all-purpose flour is another great alternative.
It is among the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour depending on what kind of food you’re cooking and what texture you desire.
However, mochiko or all-purpose are the two best options that work well with most dishes.
8. Arrowroot Powder
Arrowroot powder is an excellent substitute for glutinous rice flour. There is no gluten or sugar in arrowroot powder, making it an ideal all-purpose flour substitute.
Also, it has a similar consistency to that of glutinous rice flour, which makes it a good choice if you’re cooking Asian dishes.
Arrowroot powder can be used in any recipe that calls for glutinous rice flour, from pastries to waffles and pancakes.
Also, It’s fairly inexpensive, so you’ll save some money by using it instead of buying other expensive flour from the store.
9. Corn Starch
Gluten-free or gluten-sensitive individuals have a difficult time using glutinous rice flour. If you are one of them, you can use these substitutes for glutinous rice flour in your recipe. Corn starch is an easy replacement.
Therefore, it has no flavor and is not sticky like other flours. So it’s a great alternative if the recipe doesn’t call for any other type of flour besides glutinous rice flour.
Cornstarch has a similar consistency to glutinous rice flour, and the recipes will turn out just as well. Moreso, they act as a binder in recipes that need more than one type of liquid or dry ingredient.
10. Sorghum Flour
Sorghum flour is a great substitute for glutinous rice flour baking in the United States.
It is made from a cereal grain called sorghum, grown primarily in Africa and the Southern United States. It has a nutty flavor and is much lighter in color than regular wheat flour.
However, if you can’t find sorghum flour at your local grocery store, you can order it online or substitute it with millet or cornmeal.
11. Brown Rice Flour
Brown rice flour is another popular choice to replace glutinous rice flour. Brown rice flour is usually more coarsely ground, making it less suitable to replace glutenous rice flour.
Moreover, if you’re making bread dough, if used in cakes and cookies will produce a softer texture. This is similar to pastry crusts made with traditional pastry or pie crusts.
12. Teff Flour
Teff flour is an excellent alternative to glutinous rice flour. It’s a type of flour made from the teff plant, which is grown in East Africa. This flour has a flavor and consistency similar to glutinous rice flour.
You can also use it just as you would other best substitutes for glutinous rice flour in bread and cakes.
If you’re gluten-sensitive, teff flour may be a good option for baking, without worrying about the possible gluten cross-contamination risk associated with some other types of flour.
13. Quinoa Flour
Quinoa flour is also among the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour. Unlike glutenous rice flour, quinoa flour is made from a seed, not a grain, which makes it easier to digest and less likely to cause an allergic reaction.
Also, it has a slightly nutty flavor and contains more protein than glutinous rice flour. Quinoa flour can be used in place of glutinous rice in most recipes that call for it.
Lastly, one exception might be if you are trying to create a chewy texture like in bread or noodles since quinoa is softer than glutinous rice.
If you don’t have access to quinoa flour, you can try chickpea (besan) powder or oat bran as substitutes instead.
14. Buckwheat Flour
Buckwheat flour is an excellent substitute for glutinous rice flour. It’s gluten-free and provides a nutty flavor to baked goods.
You can use buckwheat flour in all the recipes for glutinous rice flour. Moreso, you can combine 1/2 cup of glutinous rice flour with 1/2 cup of buckwheat flour as a substitute.
If you’re looking for the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour try substituting 1/4 cup of unbleached white whole wheat pastry flour.
With 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds per cup of glutinous rice flour. Also, you’ll get more fiber and protein from this mix.
15. Millet Flour
Millet flour is among the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour. It has a sweet flavor and can be used in almost any recipe that uses rice flour.
Moreover, they are all gluten-free, which is an essential consideration if you make something like bread or pasta.
That will be eaten by people who have celiac disease or are allergic to wheat. Also, these flours have different textures from one another, depending on what you’re making.
(Sorghum might give your baked goods a little more chewiness). Experiment with them to see which one works best for you!
16. Amaranth Flour
Amaranth flour is a healthy substitute for glutinous rice flour in many of your favorite recipes. Amaranth flour is made from amaranth seeds that are dried and ground into a fine powder.
This gluten-free, grain-free, vegan, organic, and non-GMO substitute can be used in everything from pancakes to pasta dough.
Moreso, another good substitute for glutinous rice flour is chickpea or garbanzo bean (besan) flour. Made from finely ground chickpeas or garbanzo beans.
This gluten-free alternative has a slightly nutty flavor and can be used to make crepes, tortillas, and more.
17. Coconut Flour
Coconut flour is one of the most popular substitutes for glutinous rice flour because it is gluten-free, grain-free, and nut-free.
Coconut flour can be difficult to bake with. But you can use a few tricks to help make the process easier.
First, ensure that your eggs and liquid ingredients are at room temperature before adding them to the batter.
Cold eggs will clump up when they meet warm coconut flour, making it more difficult to get a smooth batter.
Lastly, add an acidic ingredient such as vinegar or lemon juice to thin out your batter so that your baking pans won’t burn from all of the excess coconut oil.
18. Almond Flour
Almond flour is among the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour and works well in many recipes. It has a high fat content, which can be problematic if you follow a low-fat diet.
However, because it does not have gluten, it’s safe for those suffering from celiac disease or gluten intolerance.
If you don’t want to buy almond flour specifically, all-purpose flour can also work as a substitute in many recipes. Just remember that the taste may be slightly different from what you expect.
Also, almond meal is another common substitute and like almond flour. It has no gluten and is safe for those who suffer from celiac disease or gluten intolerance.
Conclusion
In the gluten-free diet, glutinous rice flour is used to replace regular wheat flour. You can make all kinds of bread and cakes with this flour.
But it’s important that you have a good substitute handy in case you run out of glutinous rice flour.
Moreso, if you live in an area where you can’t find it easily. Glutinous rice flour isn’t easy to find outside of Asian markets. So here are the best substitutes for glutinous rice flour.
