玉米淀粉 (yùmǐ diànfěn) · cornstarch, cornflour

Meanings

1 cornstarch
2 cornflour

About the ingredient

调料 Seasonings

A fine white starch from corn. It thickens sauces to a clear gloss, coats sliced meat so it stays tender in a stir-fry, and makes fried coatings crisp.

Also called 粟粉

Used in 3 dishes

糖醋里脊 tángcù lǐji

炸鲜奶 zháxiānnǎi

牛筋面 niújīnmiàn

Characters

Examples

HSK 7-9

汤太稀了，加点玉米淀粉吧。

Tāng tài xī le, jiā diǎn yùmǐ diànfěn ba.

The soup is too thin; add some cornstarch.

HSK 7-9

勾芡的时候，先把玉米淀粉用冷水调匀，再慢慢倒进锅里。

Gōuqiàn de shíhou, xiān bǎ yùmǐ diànfěn yòng lěngshuǐ tiáoyún, zài mànmàn dàojìn guō lǐ.

To thicken a sauce, first mix the cornstarch with cold water, then slowly pour it into the wok.

Tips

usage

玉米淀粉 is cornstarch, the fine white thickener. Coarse cornmeal is 玉米面, and 玉米粉 can mean either, so recipes that need a thickener name 玉米淀粉. Cantonese and Hong Kong recipes call cornstarch 生粉.