Vegan Foam/Air Stabilizer.

[DBanner-2012]

Greetings,

I am planning a christmas dinner and i want to incorporate a vanilla and cardamom infused red pepper foam that is suitable for vegans and is soy free. I plan to use Agar but i havent found much information concerning its detailed application with foams.

I purchased 'The Cook's Book', Thinking Ferrens chapter would cover this, but it does not.

Specifially i am wondering if i need to cook the Agar, or if i can just sprinkle it on top of my juice and go into hand immersion work as with lecithin.

Generally in my area Agar comes in flakes, so would i powder it before use if a raw application is possible?

Can anyone indicate the proper ratio between agar and liquid? Is it similar in percentage to lecithin?

And if it needs to be cooked into the liquid, is there a temp range to hit?

I appreciate any book references or advice.

[pastrygirl]

I've never used agar in a foam, but I do use it in fluid gels. As far as I know, it needs to be heated beyond the melting point of around 170F.

[mkayahara]

Agar should be brought to at least 90C for proper hydration, but it does not form airs the same way lecithin does. Typical concentration is in the 1% neighbourhood; acidic bases will require more. Gel your base with the agar, blend it until smooth, then dispense it from a whipped cream siphon to foam.

[DBanner-2012]

Thanks guys.

I will be using a hand blender.

Thank you for the information on cooking temps. I may have to end up using soy lecithin, but i was hoping to avoid it. You mentioned agar as a stabilizer wont foam like lecithin. Does it produce a more dense foam? Does it hold?

DB~