Food - Drink
The Extra Step You Should Take When Using Tapioca As A Thickener
By JESSIE MOLLOY
In addition to working as a wheat alternative, tapioca is often used as a thickening agent for sauces and puddings, much like cornstarch; however, using tapioca as a thickener can become lumpy when it is cooked. In order to avoid this, Better Homes & Gardens has a simple suggestion for an extra step while preparing your sauce, soup, or pudding.
The downside to using tapioca as a thickener is it can stay lumpier than flour or cornstarch once cooked since tapioca primarily comes formed into little, hard pearls known as boba. Before adding the tapioca to the mixture, Better Homes & Gardens suggest taking a mortar and pestle and grinding up the tapioca pearls into a fine powder.
The ground up tapioca can then be added to your food, more like flour or cornstarch and prevent lumps from forming, while still retaining texture if you need to freeze your creation. Cooking With Lane agrees that a mortar and pestle can smooth out the consistency of your product, even when using different forms of tapioca.