Corn starch

This article is about corn starch. For cornmeal also known as cornflour, see Cornmeal.

Corn starch
Corn starch powder
Food energy
(per 100 g serving)
381 kcal (1595 kJ)
Nutritional value
(per 100 g serving)
Protein0.3 g
Fat0.1 g
Carbohydrate91 g
Other informationdensity 0.54 g/ml [1]
Corn starch mixed in water

Cornflour, cornstarch, maize starch, or corn starch (American English) is the starch derived from corn (maize) grain.[2] The starch is obtained from the endosperm of the kernel. Corn starch is a common food ingredient, often used to thicken sauces or soups, and to make corn syrup and other sugars.[3] Corn starch is versatile, easily modified, and finds many uses in industry such as adhesives, in paper products, as an anti-sticking agent, and textile manufacturing.[4] It has medical uses as well, such as to supply glucose for people with glycogen storage disease.[5]

Like many products in dust form, it can be hazardous in large quantities due to its flammability—see dust explosion. When mixed with a fluid, corn starch can rearrange itself into a non-Newtonian fluid. For example, adding water transforms corn starch into a material commonly known as oobleck while adding oil transforms corn starch into an electrorheological (ER) fluid. The concept can be explained through the mixture termed "cornflour slime".[6]

  1. ^ "Density of Cornstarch in 285 units and reference information".
  2. ^ "Cornstarch | Definition of Cornstarch by Merriam-Webster". Merriam-webster.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  3. ^ "Uses of Corn". www2.education.uiowa.edu. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
  4. ^ Starch : chemistry and technology. Whistler, Roy Lester., BeMiller, James N., Paschall, Eugene F. (2nd ed.). Orlando: Academic Press. 1984. Chap. 6, p. 121. ISBN 978-0-12-746270-7. OCLC 9155004.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. ^ Gremse, D.A.; Bucuvalas, J. C.; Balistreri, W. F. (October 1990). "Efficacy of cornstarch therapy in type III glycogen-storage disease". The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 52 (4): 671–674. doi:10.1093/ajcn/52.4.671. ISSN 0002-9165. PMID 2403059.
  6. ^ "How to: make a liquid that's also a solid". bbc.co.uk. August 5, 2013. Archived from the original on December 12, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.