Agar-agar

Gelidium spp., Gracilariopsis spp. …

seaweed · prebiotic

A gelling agent extracted from red seaweeds, sold as powder or strands: it sets as it cools, firmer than gelatine. It is an almost pure soluble fibre.

Origin

Japan (Gelidium red seaweeds)

Season (United States)

imported · all year round

Preparation

It is dissolved in a cold liquid, which is then boiled for one to two minutes: without boiling, it will not set. It gels as it cools; 2 g per half litre gives a firm jelly.

Molecules

Mucilages · Seaweed polysaccharidesIn small amounts, not counted Iodine

Did you know?

Legend has it born in 1658 at the inn of a Kyoto innkeeper, Mino Tarōzaemon; in 1882, at Fanny Hesse's suggestion, it entered Robert Koch's laboratory, where it has been used to grow microbes ever since.