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How to Cook Agar Strips & Agar Powder?
How to Cook Agar Strips
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1. What is Agar?
Agar is a coagulant extracted from a kind of seaweed, and its finished products are in the form of powder or strips, colorless and tasteless. Its gelability is stronger than the general hydrocolloids, and it is widely used in the production of various food products.
Since agar is made from natural seaweeds, it is a true vegetarian food.
In Japan, agar is also known as Kanten, which is derived from red algae. Although kanten and agar are basically the same thing, the coagulation ability of kanten is usually much stronger than that of agar.
2. Three Common Types of Agar
3. How to Cook Agar Agar
3.1 How to Cook Agar Strips
Soak the agar strips in cool water (or milk, juice, tea, etc.) before use, then remove and place in a pot, heat with other liquids until completely dissolved, then add other ingredients, turn off the heat and let it stand until completely cooled down.
Cooking time: It usually takes 10-15 minutes to cook agar strips
Recommended amount: 1 tablespoon of agar strips vs. 4 tablespoons of hot water. One tablespoon of agar strips is usually enough to thicken one cup of liquid.
3.2 How to Cook Agar Powder
Generally, you don't need to soak it in water in advance (but you can also put it in water in advance for better and faster dissolution and to prevent clumping), put it directly into the liquid and boil it until it is completely dissolved, then add other ingredients, stir it well and turn off the heat until it cools.
Cooking time: It usually takes 1-5 minutes to cook agar powder
Recommended dosage: 1 teaspoon of agar powder vs. 4 tablespoons of hot water. Generally, one teaspoon of agar powder will thicken one cup of liquid.
Tips for Cooking Agar Strips & Agar Powder
1. When you cook agar strips or agar powder, you should not add them directly to the food.
2. Add portions exactly as called for in the baking recipe, or you can adjust the addition according to basic principles.
4. Key Points about Agar
- 4.1 Agar can be used in any vegetarian recipe without dairy products. Agar is suitable for the preparation of sauces, jelly desserts, custards and puddings.
- 4.2 Since agar sets at room temperature, it is possible that it will set in the middle of the process if it is too slow or if the mold is too cold.
- 4.3 The addition of sugar to the agar solution will stabilize it and prevent water separation, while the gel formed will become transparent.
- 4.4 Agar should be kept in a dry place at a temperature between 18 and 25°C to increase the stock life of agar. If the storage temperature is excessive for a long time, it will lead to a decrease of the gel strength.
- 4.5 Agar should not be stored together with things with strong odor.
5. How to Choose and Buy High Quality Agar?
Pectin is widely used in the food industry for its good gelation, thickening and stabilization properties.
(1) As a gelling agent, it can be used in the production of jams, jellies, gummies, etc;
(2) As a stabilizer, it can be used in the production of pectin chocolate drinks and acidic milk drinks;
(3) Pectin also has good properties of anti-diarrhea, anti-cancer, weight loss, lowering blood sugar and cholesterol, so it is usually used in the pharmaceutical industry to make hemostatic agents, plasma substitutes, toxic metal antidotes, etc.
Above is a brief introduction to how to cook agar strips & agar powder, if you are interested in our agar products please contact our sales staff.
Above is a brief introduction to how to cook agar strips & agar powder, if you are interested in our agar products please contact our sales staff.
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About Gino Biotech
We are a biotech company specializing in the research, development, and commercialization of innovative and technological food additives hydrocolloids Agar Agar, Carrageenan, and Tailor-Made Stabilizer Solutions.
With the extended know-how and experience in the research, application, and use of Hydrocolloids, we could provide one-stop-shop customized solutions perfectly matched to the needs of our customers.
Our products cover the needs of the Meat, Dairy, Bakery, Confectionery, and other industrial sectors.
