Gluten-free cooking isn't nearly as hard as it first appears. There are plenty of substitutions that allow you to maintain the diet without giving anything up. Some of the most basic ones involve swapping out prepared foods for similar alternatives. Replacing ingredients in recipes can be a little bit more complicated, but there are still plenty of options for people who are willing to be flexible.
Using Tapioca
Many recipes rely on thickening agents to get the right consistency. Some of those agents are always gluten-free, but flour is a common choice that does contain gluten. That calls for a substitution that will have the same ability to make dishes thicker without adding a new flavor to them.
Tapioca starch is usually the correct choice. You can replace normal flour with an equal amount of the tapioca starch when it is being used as a thickener to get a comparable result. It has very little flavor on its own, so it can go in almost any dish without changing how it tastes. Since it is just as good at thickening dishes as conventional flour, the recipe will not need any adjustment to deal with a new quantity of dry ingredients.
Tapioca can also be useful for baking. Some recipes will use it on its own, but others will use it as part of a flour blend with other gluten-free flours. Both methods will work as long as the other ingredients are right, so choosing the technique comes down to personal preference and convenience.
Replacing Oats
While some people who are sensitive to gluten can tolerate oats, many cannot, especially in large quantities. That makes it vital to find a replacement for them, and the precise substitute will depend on the way that those oats are being used.
Oatmeal is the easy thing to replace. Almost any grain can be cooked in a similar way to get a dish that resembles oatmeal. The flavors will be different, so it's wise to experiment with them to figure out which ones you like. Quinoa is a popular choice because it has a lot of protein compared to the alternatives. It has a nutty flavor, with the darker varieties adding earthy notes. Rice is another popular option due to its low price and mild flavor. Consider using brown rice instead of white to increase your fiber intake.
Bakers have a harder time replacing oats. None of the substitutions are perfect, but rice bran and flaked grains are reasonable effective. Most bakers will need to experiment with each recipe to find the replacement that provides the best flavor, so be ready for some trial and error in your recipes that include oats.
Try Rice Flour
Replacing flour is one of the simplest tasks for gluten-free cooks, even though there are a lot of options and factors to consider. The best results often come from using a blend of flours, but that adds to the workload while cooking. You can solve that problem by buying a prepared flour blend, but it is also possible to use a single flour in many cases.
Rice flour is usually the best choice. The easiest way to use it is to look for recipes from Asian, since it has been in use there for centuries. There are several types, and it is vital to get the right one. Sweet rice flour tends to create chewy and elastic dishes, while white and brown rice flour lead to a more crumbly texture. They can easily be mixed together to help control the final product's texture, but they cannot be used to substitute for each other.
If you want to use rice flour in a recipe that normally uses wheat flour, you will likely need to include a binder along with it. Tapioca works well, and can be used to make the simplest blend for replacing all-purpose flour. Alternatives, such as xanthan gum, are also available, so it pays to experiment to find the best combinations!
