Vegetarians rejoice: Agar offers a perfect gelatin alternative

Agar is a plant-based product, making it an ideal substitute for gelatin in meat-free diets. Its use is simple—trying new products can enhance your everyday recipes. Don't hesitate to add it to your cart when you find it in a store or while shopping online.

Traditionally, agar was obtained exclusively from Japanese red algae harvested from great ocean depths. After proper drying and heat treatment, it became a valuable culinary ingredient. However, cultivating red algae and other seaweed for agar today extends far beyond Japan. Extensive plantations are developing in regions such as Spain, Egypt, and New Zealand. It’s worth incorporating agar into familiar Polish cuisine as well.

Agar is perfect for preparing desserts like panna cotta, jams, and creams. You can also confidently add it to savory dishes like terrines and vegetable aspics. When heated, it doesn’t lose its properties and has a neutral smell and taste, making it a truly versatile addition to the kitchen.

It contains a lot of fiber and a few calories. It stimulates intestinal peristalsis, facilitating the movement of fecal masses and preventing constipation. Fiber from agar swells in the stomach, giving a longer-lasting feeling of fullness. This helps control appetite and prevent overeating, which is particularly important in a weight-loss diet.

Agar is a valuable source of many minerals, including calcium, potassium, magnesium, and iron, as well as fiber. It’s worth including in your diet to benefit from its properties.

Instead of 1 teaspoon of gelatin, use 0.5-2 teaspoons of agar. The more agar you use, the thicker the jelly will be. Remember that agar also thickens after cooling.

Types of agar can vary, hence the differences in proportions. It’s worth carefully reading the instructions on the package. If the consistency turns out to be too thick, you can dilute it with a bit of liquid.