potato starch

[skylarking]

The New York Times--in the "Temporary Vegetarian" column-- recently featured a recipe for Korean pancakes. The recipe called for potato starch to be mixed with the regular wheat flour. The recipe's author claims it makes a superior pancake. Has anyone seen potato starch (NOT potato flour) in Japan? Is there a Japanese translation for potato starch? Thanks for your help.

[Hiroyuki]

Katakuriko かたくりこ　片栗粉

As the name implies, katakuriko used to be made from katakuri, but now it's made from potatoes, as described here.

Thus,

Katkuriko = Potato starch

In Japan, some people like to add some katakuriko to wheat flour to make tempura batter, but if you add too much (20% or greater), the texture of the resultant tempura will be "zakuzaku" rather than "sakusaku". I don't like to add any katakuriko to flour when I make tempura.

But, when I make chicken karaage, I usually mix one part katakuriko and one part flour.

[qrn]

I just looked in my spice cabinet and, there is a bag of Potato Starch...I have not figured out exactly why I bought it, or what I am going to do with it yet...I bought it at the local natural grocers (Vitamin Cottage)

Bud

[nickrey]

The potato starch that I buy in Sydney is Japanese in origin.

As outlined above it's name is Katkuriko. In my case the company producing it is the Hokuren corporation.

I typically use it for thickening sauces instead of cornstarch. You use less potato starch for an equivalent amount of liquid than flour, it is tasteless, gluten free, and more translucent than corn starch. Add it at the end of cooking as a slurry mixed with water (to a thin cream like consistency). It thickens at a lower temperature than cornstarch so you will need to watch the sauce carefully so as to remove it from the heat when it is sufficiently thickened.

Thanks for the information on using it in batters, I'll try it out.

[Hiroyuki]

You can always make milk mochi, with some katakuriko, milk, and sugar.

[skylarking]

Thank you for your help, everyone. I have heard of katakuriko, but never knew it was potato starch. I can't wait to make the Korean pancakes.