9 Easy Substitutes for Cassava Flour (2024)

Cassava flour is a popular gluten-free flour substitute you can use in a variety of recipes.

For instance, you can swap in cassava flour for wheat flour in baked goods, use it to thicken soups and sauces, or make it a staple ingredient in delicious homemade flatbreads, tortillas, and pastas.

However, cassava flour may be difficult to find, as it’s not always available in local stores. Also, if you’re following a low carb or ketogenic diet, you may want to avoid it.

Fortunately, there are plenty of other ingredients you can use instead when whipping up your favorite dishes.

Here are 9 simple and healthy substitutes for cassava flour.

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1. Tapioca starch

Like cassava flour, tapioca starch is made from the cassava plant.

However, while cassava flour is produced using the entire root of the plant, tapioca is made using only the starch of tapioca.

Since they’re derived from the same plant, it should come as no surprise that tapioca starch can be a good replacement for cassava. You can use tapioca starch easily in place of cassava flour in everything from main dishes to baked goods.

Tapioca starch and cassava flour are very similar in terms of nutrition, although tapioca starch is slightly lower in carbs and fiber and higher in potassium (1, 2).

However, keep in mind that tapioca starch may not provide as much thickness as cassava flour, so you may want to pair it with other gums or thickening agents in certain recipes.

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Tapioca starch is derived from the same plant as cassava flour and can be used in baked goods, main dishes, and desserts.

2. Potato starch

Potato starch is an ingredient made by crushing potatoes, extracting the starch, and drying it to form a fine powder.

One of the best parts of potato starch is that it’s naturally gluten-free, so you can use it in place of cassava flour to thicken foods without gluten content.

Like cassava flour, potato starch is high in carbs. However, it’s lacking in other nutrients, including fiber, fat, and protein (3).

Additionally, potato starch is much heavier than cassava flour and other types of flour, so it may make some dishes too dense.

Therefore, you may find that it’s best to use potato starch in small quantities as a thickener to maintain the texture of your baked goods.

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Potato starch is a gluten-free flour substitute that can help thicken dishes or add structure to baked goods.

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3. Chickpea flour

Made from ground dried chickpeas, chickpea flour is a high protein, gluten-free flour substitute that you can use as a direct replacement for cassava flour in many recipes.

It works especially well as a binder and thickener for fritters, veggie burgers, soups, stews, and sauces.

It’s also a great source of protein, fiber, and micronutrients like thiamine, folate, manganese, and copper (4).

However, chickpea flour can have a strong nutty flavor, which you may find overpowering in certain recipes. Additionally, it’s denser than cassava flour, so be sure to adjust the amount as needed. Thicken slowly and check the texture!

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Chickpea flour has a strong flavor and can be used in place of cassava flour as a thickener in savory recipes.

4. Almond flour

Made from almonds that are blanched and ground into a fine powder, almond flour is one of the most popular keto-friendly flours available.

It’s significantly lower in carbs than cassava flour and offers you a source of protein, fiber, and heart-healthy fats (2, 5).

It’s also versatile, thanks to its high fat content, which can add a moist and tender texture to foods — especially pancakes, cookies, biscuits, breads, and scones.

While you can replace cassava flour with almond flour using a 1:1 ratio for most recipes, keep in mind that this may change the flavor and consistency of your final product. As usual, you may need to adjust the amounts of other ingredients in your recipe.

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Almond flour is a versatile ingredient with a high fat content, which can improve the texture of pancakes, cookies, biscuits, and breads.

5. Coconut flour

Made by grinding dried coconut into flour, coconut flour has a fine consistency similar to that of cassava flour.

It can be used in a variety of paleo and keto recipes, including baked goods like cakes, cookies, and muffins.

It’s also one of the most nutritious flours, boasting a hearty dose of fiber, protein, potassium, and iron in each serving (6).

However, because it’s denser than cassava flour and imparts a strong nutty flavor, you’ll typically need to use only one-quarter as much coconut flour as you would of other flours in the same recipes.

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Coconut flour has a nutty flavor and a fine consistency. It’s often used in paleo and keto foods, including baked goods like cakes, cookies, and muffins.

6. Arrowroot starch

Arrowroot flour is derived from arrowroot, a type of root vegetable that is native to Indonesia.

It has a neutral flavor and aroma, so it can be a handy ingredient for many recipes.

Arrowroot flour is highly nutritious, packing a good amount of fiber, protein, and folate into each serving (7).

Finally, it works well as a thickener and can be used in place of cassava flour in a 1:1 ratio when making savory baked goods such as biscuits, cookies, or breads.

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Arrowroot flour is a thickener and gluten-free flour substitute that has a neutral taste and aroma.

7. All-purpose flour

Typically made from a blend of soft and hard wheat, all-purpose flour is one of the most versatile substitutes for cassava flour.

It can thicken your soups, sauces, and gravies. Also, you can use it for all types of baked goods — including cakes, cookies, breads, pancakes, and waffles.

Compared with all-purpose flour, cassava flour is lighter but tends to absorb more liquid.

Therefore, while you can use an equal amount of all-purpose flour to replace cassava flour, you may want to adjust the ratio of other ingredients in your recipe to achieve the desired texture and consistency.

Additionally, keep in mind that all-purpose flour has been heavily processed and refined, so it contains less fiber per serving than cassava flour does (2, 8).

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All-purpose flour is a versatile ingredient that works well in baked goods, soups, sauces, and gravies.

8. Rice flour

Rice flour is a gluten-free flour made from uncooked rice that has been finely milled. It’s ideal for baking, but it can also boast other benefits.

It’s high in protein, fiber, and an assortment of other essential nutrients, including B vitamins and magnesium (9).

It has a subtle flavor and texture that make it a suitable replacement for cassava flour in baked goods or as a thickening agent. You most likely won’t find it overpowering in your dishes.

While it can be substituted for cassava flour using a 1:1 ratio, rice flour tends to have a stickier texture, so you might need to add extra oil or water to your recipe.

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Rice flour has a subtle flavor and can be swapped in for cassava flour in baked goods or used as a thickener.

9. Cornstarch

Cornstarch may be one of the most affordable and common alternatives to cassava flour.

It’s typically used as a thickening agent to improve the texture and consistency of everything from pie fillings to omelets.

Keep in mind that cornstarch is high in carbs and calories but low in other nutrients such as protein and fiber. It generally lacks nutritional benefits, so consider using it in small amounts (10).

Additionally, because cornstarch has stronger thickening properties than cassava flour, you typically need to use only about half as much.

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Cornstarch can be used as a thickening agent to improve the texture and consistency of many dishes.

Cassava flour is featured in a wide range of recipes as a common gluten-free flour substitute.

However, if you don’t have any on hand, plenty of other ingredients can work in its place.

Though you may need to adjust your recipe to account for any differences in taste and texture, embrace the variety of substitutes available. You can find flours to suit your gluten-free, low carb, high protein, or paleo diet.