The Retro Ingredient That Makes The Crispiest Fried Food

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Everyone loves that perfect crunch on fried food, but getting it consistently at home can be a tad tricky. A lot of times, coatings turn out greasy or chewy instead of crisp. There's a somewhat retro pantry item that can make a big difference: Enter instant flour. This isn't your standard all-purpose flour; It's specially prepared through pre-cooking and drying out wheat flour. This treatment changes how it fries, particularly when hitting hot oil, making it excellent for serving up the crispiest fried food.

What sets instant flour apart comes down to two main things: proteins and starch. Regular all-purpose flour contains a fair amount of protein, which forms gluten when it gets wet. Gluten is great for bread, but when you're frying with it, it acts like a sponge, soaking up moisture from the food and oil. This leads to coatings that can be dense or oily. Instant flour has less protein, meaning much less gluten. Without that spongy gluten, the coating can dry out quickly in the fryer, creating a lighter, and much crispier texture.

The other key is the pre-cooked starch. The starch in regular flour is raw and needs time in the hot oil to cook first before it can start to crisp up. Instant flour's starch has already been pre-cooked. So, the moment it hits heat, it almost instantly begins to release its moisture and form a crust. It works well for traditional deep-frying in oil, and it can also be used in your air fryer. Just a heads up, you'll want to either spray or brush a little bit of oil onto your food before popping it into the air fryer to get a thin, crisp layer.

Instant flour really shines when used with foods that cook quickly, too. It'll be best matched with lighter foods like fish, chicken cutlets or thin tenders, or seafood like shrimp or crab. If you're using regular flour, these foods can easily overcook and become dry or rubbery if left in the fryer too long waiting to crisp up. Since instant flour creates a quick crust, it allows the outside of your dish to get golden and crunchy just as the interior gets fully cooked. The airy crust also pairs nicely with these types of foods, as they both have a lightness to them.

Another benefit of using instant flour is how it keeps its crispiness for a longer period of time. Some fried foods — especially chicken wings or homemade french fries — can lose their crunchiness when you let them sit around too long, or have them as leftovers. When you coat your food with instant flour, combined with potato or corn starch, you can make the dish last longer and keep its crispiness. It's also great for breading vegetables like onion rings or creating tempura-style meals, giving them a light and airy crust. Going for that perfectly crispy crunch? Grab a canister of Gold Medal Wondra Quick Mixing All-Purpose Flour and realize your deep-fried destiny.