agar agar with acid mixture

[iii_bake]

hi

I am tryinn to make agar agar crystalized sheet with lemon falvour.

It seems that the agar agar will not set if there is acid in the mixture.

Does anyone have exoerience in this?

Is there anyway to make this set?

Please help!

Thanks

[chefAZ]

why dont you sub the lemon juice for lemon zest and citric acid

[iii_bake]

why dont you sub the lemon juice for lemon zest and citric acid

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cud u pls elaborate more oin the citric acid?

I really got no clue on what it is and how it works.

Thanks

[Dave the Cook]

Depending on concentration, of course, citric acid generally has a lower pH than lemon juice (5% citric acid is 1.87; lemon juice is about 2.3), so citric acid isn't likely to help.

There's a good discussion of agar and other Asian gelling agents here.

But it seems to me that if you want a "crystallized sheet," you might want to use something other than agar -- maybe isomalt?

[alanamoana]

we used to make a lemon flavored agar (not my department), but it set up fine. i realize that it doesn't set up as well with acidic ingredients. does heating the juice affect any change in the pH? agar does have to be boiled to dissolve.

[iii_bake]

But it seems to me that if you want a "crystallized sheet," you might want to use something other than agar -- maybe isomalt?

←

I am working on Thai dessert made from cooking agar agar with syrup until thivk and leave to dry until the skin crystalized.

It is normally a very sweet thin so i need to make a sour ones.

And for the heating...i ahve been boliling the mixture for qutie sometime...still it does not set.

I wonder what other dept. of alanamoana used to make the lemon agar agar

Any more comments please....

[MelissaH]

we used to make a lemon flavored agar (not my department), but it set up fine.  i realize that it doesn't set up as well with acidic ingredients.  does heating the juice affect any change in the pH?  agar does have to be boiled to dissolve.

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I think you may be doomed, if you must boil the agar in lemon juice.

Agar is a polysaccharide: a bunch of sugar molecules hooked together. If you want to chemically break up a polysaccharide, a common way to do so is to boil in an acidic water solution. You might want to do such a thing, on purpose, when you're making caramel: this is why many recipes call for a touch of lemon juice or cream of tartar in with the sugar and water.

If you're boiling agar to get it to dissolve, and you have acid in with the rest of the stuff, you're starting to dismantle the structure of the agar. It won't set as well once you've started to chew the molecules apart, and that's where your problem is coming from. You have a better chance at getting this to work if you can wait to add the acid till after the agar has been boiled.

MelissaH

[iii_bake]

we used to make a lemon flavored agar (not my department), but it set up fine.  i realize that it doesn't set up as well with acidic ingredients.  does heating the juice affect any change in the pH?  agar does have to be boiled to dissolve.

←

I think you may be doomed, if you must boil the agar in lemon juice.

Agar is a polysaccharide: a bunch of sugar molecules hooked together. If you want to chemically break up a polysaccharide, a common way to do so is to boil in an acidic water solution. You might want to do such a thing, on purpose, when you're making caramel: this is why many recipes call for a touch of lemon juice or cream of tartar in with the sugar and water.

If you're boiling agar to get it to dissolve, and you have acid in with the rest of the stuff, you're starting to dismantle the structure of the agar. It won't set as well once you've started to chew the molecules apart, and that's where your problem is coming from. You have a better chance at getting this to work if you can wait to add the acid till after the agar has been boiled.

MelissaH

←

All right...thank you ...

I will go try now and report the result..... (or may come back with more ignorant Qs!!!)

Thanks

[iii_bake]