It's Agar-Agar Time!!!

I would like to explore this wonderful plant based substance called Agar.
Agar is a gelatine-like substance derived from red seaweed.  It is well known in East Asia for its extensive use in cookery both savoury and desserts.  These days agar is easily found in supermarket, health food stores, deli and generally most Asian grocery stores.  Agar normally comes in different forms – powder, flakes, grains, sheets, and sticks.

Agar-Agar in form of flakes, grains and powder.

Agar is normally used as gelatine substitute and it has 5 times greater setting properties than gelatine and contains 80% of soluble fibre.  Another difference between agar and gelatine is that agar sets in room temperature and gelatine often requires chilling.

Agar is Cold in nature and it is useful to relieve summer heat; constipation and Lung Dryness due to dry heat in the summer months.

However the nature of Agar will change depending on what is added to it.  Proper mixture of ingredients might enhance the therapeutic effect or complimentary to desire therapeutic outcome or work against it.

Due to its versatility and vast options in usage it merely up to our imagination to utilise it.

The following recipe and suggestion are indicative only.

Basic Preparation:

A.  Assuming using Agar sticks.

7g Agar – cut to short length

7 cups water

Method:

1. Rinse agar in cold water then drain. 
2. Heat up 6 cups of water in a saucepan.  Not to boil. 
3. Soak the agar in the warm water for 30 minutes. 
4. Bring to boil on high heat then vigorous simmer while stirring to dissolve the agar completely. 
5. Sugar or honey can be added while boiling.  Arrange cut seasonal fruits at the bottom of mould.  Slowly pour in the hot agar into the mould without disturbing the fruits arrangement. 
6. Let the agar cool and set at room temperature before chilling in the fridge.

B.  Following instruction on the package you purchased.

C.  Follow recipe books instructions.

In the next coming weeks I will post few recipes using Agar-Agar and explore it usage in my cookbook.

Thank you for reading.

Kenny Law
Australia Registered TCM Practitioner.
 

DISCLAIMER:
Information given are purely for references and it is not intent to diagnose medical conditions or to be used for self-diagnosed. Always consult medical health personnel for proper medical diagnosis.

© COPYRIGHT 2010 KENNY LAW

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