Since its discovery more than three decades ago, gellan gum has become a common additive in the food, beverage, personal care, industrial cleaners and paper-production markets, especially over the past 15 years. According to KP Celco, today the leading global producer of gellan gum, some of its primary functions and uses include: (1)
•Helping form gel-like consistency within substances
•Helping prevent settling or separating within food and industrial products
•Texturizing, stabilizing or binding food ingredients together in a uniform way
•Helping with elasticity, structuring and suspension
•Preventing ingredients from changing form due to temperature changes
•Providing a gel base in cellular experiments performed in petri dishes
•As an alternative to gelatin in vegan food products
•In cosmetics and beauty products to provide a smooth feeling
•In gastronomy cooking (especially desserts) to keep ingredients from melting
•And various others uses, including film-forming
So what is gellan gum exactly? It’s a food additive produced through bacterial fermentation using a sugar source, which provides a source of energy for the bacteria to consume. Gellan gum is considered to be valuable and unique in manufacturing due to its capability of creating fluid, gel solutions that have weak structures, a characteristic that’s important for structuring and adding “creaminess.” It also has a preferable setting temperature and tends to keep its stability/structure even when temperatures change or increase. In other words, it has a high “degree of thermal stability” (some studies show it’s able to withstand temps up to 120°C/248°F).
How to Use and Cook with Gellan Gum?
Gellan gum is sold under branded names such as GELRITE, Nanogel-TC, Gelrich, Grovgel, AppliedGel or Phytagel.
If you’re able to find any in local stores or choose to purchase some online, small amounts of gellan gum can serve similar purposes to other thickening or stabilizing agents, including those I don’t particularly recommend consuming — such as carrageenan. Therefore, if you’re in need of binding ingredients together to create fluid textures, especially in any vegan recipes, it can make a good natural alternative when cooking or baking.
Gellan gum’s uses are similar to those of locust bean gum, guar gum and xanthan gum — all similar products used to help bind, stabilize and texturize products (especially foods). While it’s best to use stabilizers and emulsifiers in small amounts (such as the minute portions added to many supplements and health food products), the addition of a tiny serving of gellan gum to recipes like yogurt or desserts can help produce a smooth finished product.
Gellan gum is sold under branded names such as GELRITE, Nanogel-TC, Gelrich, Grovgel, AppliedGel or Phytagel.
If you’re able to find any in local stores or choose to purchase some online, small amounts of gellan gum can serve similar purposes to other thickening or stabilizing agents, including those I don’t particularly recommend consuming — such as carrageenan. Therefore, if you’re in need of binding ingredients together to create fluid textures, especially in any vegan recipes, it can make a good natural alternative when cooking or baking.
Gellan gum is used with liquids to dissolve it. The liquid can either be cold or hot. Look for either high-acyl gellan or low-acyl gellan. Here is a bit about how they differ:
•High-acyl is opaque, while low-acyl is clear.
•Both types make recipes more gel-like but don’t change the flavor of the ingredients in the recipes much.
•Use low-acyl gellan gum to create textures that are firmer and more brittle, versus high-acyl gellan gum to form softer and more elastic textures that have a higher viscosity and “creamy” mouthfeel. It’s also possible to combine the two types to create the exact desired texture that’s somewhere in the middle.
•Gellan will disperse in cold water, but it’s easier if you use warm to hot water or combine it with ingredients like a source of sugar, alcohol or glycerin.
•According to the Molecular Recipes website, chefs have found that high-acyl gellan gum typically hydrates at 185°F/85°C, gels from 158-176°F/70-80°C, and melts from 160-167°F/71-75°C.
•Low-acyl tends to react to lower temperatures. It typically hydrates between 167-203°F/75-95°C, gels from 50-122°F/10-50°C, and melts from 176-284°F/80-140°C.
•High-acyl gellan is freeze/thaw-stable , but usually low-acyl gellan is not.
•High-acyl gellan will tolerate up to 50 percent alcohol.
You only need a very small amount of gellan gum to work. Look for products in the concentration range of 0.2 percent to 1.0 percent gellan gum if you’re using it in recipes. Use a very tiny amount to start (start with a small pinch, less than half teaspoon), adding more as you go depending on the texture you’re looking for and the size of the recipe. Keep it mind it works quickly and will gel recipes very fast, so less is more!
Gellan Gum Recipes
Here are several recipes you can try adding a pinch of gellan gum to in order to help with texturing and heat-stabilizing:
•Try using a small amount of preferably organic gellan gum when working with dairy, sorbet, gluten-free flours, clear/sticky noodles or preparing other DIY beauty/household recipes that require forming gel-like textures.
•You might want to try making probiotic-rich homemade kefir or yogurt, in which you can use gellan gum as a thickening agent to help with maintaining homogeneity of texture.
•Same goes for homemade fruit sherbet in a blender, homemade ice cream, fruit toppings for desserts, vegan banana cream pie, or homemade almond milk or coconut milk.
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