Authors:

What happens is that in each clump you've got the gelatinization of starches, which happens very quickly at the surface of the clump and it kind of forms a protective skin around this dry hunk of flour.

"TV Chef Alton Brown Shares Tips On The Science Of Thanksgiving Dinner". "All Things Considered" with Ari Shapiro, www.npr.org. November 24, 2016.
What happens is that in each clump you've got the gelatinization of starches, which happens very quickly at the surface of the clump and it kind of forms a protective skin around this dry hunk of flour.