Notes about Agar Agar

[susie_flo]

This is just an aide memoir for my own future reference  (however am posting for fellow jelly-lunatic kissmeforlonger)


3 vegetarian jelly experiments using agar agar:

Fail #1:  2tsp of finely powdered agar agar to 1 pint of fruit juice makes a giant wine gum.

Fail #2: 1.5 tsp of finely powdered agar agar to 1 pint of fruit juice is close, but not jelly.  Still far too firm to be enjoyable. 

Success:  1 flat tsp of finely powdered agar agar to 1 pint of fruit juice makes perfect jelly.   It de-moulds all shiny and gorgeous but is in fact *only just set* and much nicer to eat than the gelatine equivalent.  The texture is very light and turns back into a juice exposion as soon as it enters your mouth.  It also holds beautifully around embedded fruit. 

Types of agar agar:

• The powdered stuff I used in the above experiments is marvellous - no granules whatsoever in the finished jelly.  (Pricey but potent and will last for years).


• The flaked stuff is easier to get hold of (e.g. from Waitrose) and I find it works perfectly well if you soak it for longer and push the jelly through a fine sieve before pouring into moulds

Notes:

• 1tsp of powder is equivalent to 1tbsp of flakes (not all recipes specify which type of agar agar is being used, hence these notes)
• It should be possible to convert gelatine recipes based on these quantities, with the caveat that highly-acidic content such as pineapple and certain alcohols are known to make a difference...  
• I still need to work out how much agar agar it will take to make a perfect champagne jelly vs a mulled wine jelly

Notes about Panna Cotta 

• This recipe made a v. delicious panna cotta, however I found it just a little bit on the sloppy side.  I plan to make it again, but using an extra 1/2 tsp of powderd agar agar.
• I'll also use simple dome moulds next time.  Much as I love my olde worlde copper jelly moulds, these are not really ideal for panna cotta.  It wants to be a thing of smooth, white simplicity - and only just set (not solid and springy like a 1970s blancmange)

Comments

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

I've just had a thought about how to make jelly centred chocolates...

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

1. Thank you for all this; my previous agar experiments were collosal fail so I stopped a couple of years ago. Am thoroughly looking forwards to trying the panna cotta recipe out.

2. If you have truffle moulds that should be fairly straightforwards, I'd imagine. I want to see the results :)

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

You are v. welcome. I've had a mix of fails and successes (hence I keep logging the results for memory)

Good luck withj the panna cotta. (The blueberry marsala sauce is gorgeous)

In case you're interested, the jelly method that works best for me is as follows...

1. Put the cold juice in a saucepan, off the heat, and sprinkle the agar agar on top - then resist the urge to stir or touch it for a good 5 mins (or 10 mins if you're using the flaked version).

2. Then turn the heat, stir and bring to the boil

3. Simmer and stir for another 5 mins until the agar is fully dissolved. (If you're using flaked this will take more like 10 mins and may benefit from being pushed through a sieve)

4. To test for set-ability, drizzle a bit on a cold saucer that has been sitting in the fridge. If it starts to gel within about 30 seconds, it's ready to mould. If it totally fails you gel, you may need to add more agar agar.

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

Ah, yes, truffle moulds, pre-coated in choc. That could work.

The way I was pondering was to make a thin slab of chocolate and cut it into squares while still slightly soft. Then make slightly smaller squares of agar-based jelly, about 1/2 " thick (this could be aloholic, fruity, spicy, creamy, herbal or whatever)

Then place a square of filling on top of each chocolate square, leaving a small rim of chocolate all the way round, stand them on a wire rack (or some other surface with lots of holes in it) and pour tempered chocolate over each one, allowing any excess choc to drip through the wire rack.

Theoretically that ought to give me nice, neat chocs...

(Bring on the next rainy weekend!)

:-)

(edited for relentless clumsy typos)

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

Ah! What I do when making my chili-blackcurrant squares (photo) is to make a strongly-flavoured, slightly over-set jam instead of a gel, because it's not affected by temperature. If you pour it out onto a teflon sheet and leave it to set (photo) then you can cap it with a thin layer of chocolate, leave to set, cut into squares and then dip into tempered chocolate.

That's how I do that sort of thing, anyway :)

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

Brilliant! I read something about set, pectin-based fruit fillings in my big, black confectionery book, but have never tried it. Pouring on a thin layer of choc is a great idea, better than the square slabs idea.

(Nice pic of the innards, btw)

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

(thank you!)

We've had this conversation before, I'm sure, but your big black book is the Greweling, isn't it? That is an outstanding big black book and I use it a *lot*.

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's the one. Lovely and a lil bit intimidating. I've really not given it as much attention as it deserves (probably because I get in the mood for confectionery-dabbling about twice a year)

[kissmeforlonger.livejournal.com]

Yum - thank you!

[the-meanest-cat.livejournal.com]

You're welcome, fellow jellyhead.