Arrow-boot Gruel
Ingredients
Directions
Make the paste
Mix the arrow-root with enough cold water to form a soft paste and rub until smooth.
Cook
Add a little boiling water and the milk, stirring briskly.
Boil for a few minutes, stirring constantly.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Arrow-root
- Thickens the gruel as its starch swells when heated, giving a smooth, glossy texture.
- Milk
- Adds body, softness and mild richness to the thickened gruel.
The step that matters
Adding the hot liquid to the paste. Starch clumps if hot liquid goes in before the paste is smooth or too fast. Brisk stirring spreads the starch evenly so the gruel thickens without lumps as it heats.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.