I made an effort to share my knowledge of the carrageenan and agar materials used as gelling agents in the production of vegan cheese in this article. For those who are interested in making vegan cheese at home, I hope it will be useful.
Carrageenan is obtained by extracting a kind of seaweed. It also goes by the name Irish moss and has the code E407. The type used in cheese making is in powder form. Kappa, iota and lambda. When making vegan cheese, kappa, which has a hard gel form, is frequently used in place of agar. Additionally, toothpaste frequently uses it as a binder agent.
Agar is a type of thickening gelatine that is made by processing algae. It has the E406 code and is a white yellow color. The term is derived from the Malay word “agar-agar,” which means “gel.”
Depending on the type of seaweed from which the agar is made, the agar dissolves in boiling liquids and, when cooled, forms a gel at a temperature between 38 and 43 degrees Celsius. They do not melt up to or above 85 ° C, unlike gelatin gels, which melt at 37 ° C. In food applications, low climate conditions like low temperatures don’t present any issues. The final product’s mouthfeel is ideal because it does not melt at low temperatures like gelatin does. Agar-agar is exceptional for the majority of applications due to the enormous difference between the gel-forming temperature and the melting temperature.
I experimented with various substitutes for making cheese and I believe agar works well for desserts. But carrageenan is perfect for melting cheeses.
There are some articles about the negative effects of carrageenan on the internet, but these are not supported by any scientific evidence. The possibility of negative effects from using the substance too frequently is mentioned. This is the same for a lot of nutrients. Depending on the dosage, there may be both benefits and drawbacks.
Being a vegan, taking vitamin B12 in a capsule has never been pleasant. In my daily meals, I prefer not to use additives like carrageenan, agar, or guar gum. On the other hand, I pay close attention to market developments and attempt it at least once. I try to use it at the conclusion of the research or development process, or I would rather not use it at that point.
Concerns about the safety of carrageenan are attributed to an article written by Dr Joanne Tobacman . The majority of the studies she uses to support her article discuss degraded carrageenan (poligeenan). She contends that even food-grade carrageenan could contain significant amounts of degraded carrageenan due to the possibility that stomach acids and specific bacteria could degrade the substance. Studies on either humans or animals do not support this assertion. Tobacman cites studies simulating the effects of gastric acid on carrageenan and the presence of degraded carrageenan as a result.
Tobacman also cites studies demonstrating that native carrageenan can encourage colonic tumors in rats, but the carrageenan in these studies made up anywhere between 2 and 4 percent of the diets of the animals. 5% and 15% of the rats’ total diets. Carrageenan, on the other hand, is present in foods at tenths ( 1%) or hundredths (. 01%) of a percent within the food and these foods make up only a small fraction of our overall diet
Therefore, comparison is not a correct equation. It is not what I would consider to be a healthy outcome, nor do I believe it to be moral.
I came across an article on Washington, D. C. August 10, 2016: A recent study on the substance carrageenan, which is crucial for giving many foods and beverages stability and tissue, shows unequivocally that, contrary to what Irish moss opponents like Tobacman claim, it does not cause inflammation in human cells.
An expert on carrageenans and a well-known toxicologist around the world James M McKim’s submission to the Journal of Food and Toxicology was recently accepted. This significant study suggests that the food element may have contributed to some unfavorable health outcomes. It is the result of a two-year study that contradicts the opinions of those who have criticized carrageenan, such as Joanne Tobacman.
By participating in extensive scientific research that demonstrates that the use of Irish moss is not harmful and rejecting extensive claims that particular groups are harmful to the Irish moss and must be removed from the food, McKim’s research exposes the critical flaws in Tobacman’s evidence.
Visit www for more details on carrageenan and other ingredients used in food production. foodingredientfacts. org. (The International Council for Food Additives (IFAC) is a worldwide association that speaks for food additive producers. The 1980-founded IFAC seeks to advance science-based regulation and the international unification of food content standards and requirements.
Since it has been used safely in food for hundreds of years, carrageenan is a well-liked alternative to gelatin that is derived from plants and is kind to the environment.
Additionally, “Follow your heart,” a well-known vegan cheese brand, incorporates carrageenan into its cheeses. They claimed to be concerned about the health of their customers and posted a carrageenan article on their website.
Carrageenan is frequently used in recipes by Miyoko Schinner, a vegan cheese author, who claims that I prefer it because it offers good melting properties. Carrageenan dissolves completely in heat, but agar gives a solid texture that resembles gel. As an alternative to melting, tapioca starch can be used, but it won’t provide enough hardness.
Originally believed to be a fragmented type of carrageenan (polygeenan) that only might result in cancer and ulcers, there are now some people who, according to the type, are spoiled when the food is heated. There are many people discussing this. Small Irish moss in your cheese, according to Miyoko, is much less harmful than milk and meat. Keeping this in mind, a lot of information about the cancer-causing properties of soybeans has been spread. Strangely, while some illnesses are believed to be brought on by carrageenan, Irish moss in its purified form is advised for use in medicine to treat these illnesses.
You can use the readily available, affordable Irish moss powder if you’d rather stay away from the purified form. It also functions effectively, though occasionally it leaves a fishy smell (which some people don’t mind).
Today, there is so much false information that finding the truth has become difficult.
People have recently started searching for every term they do not understand on Google under the guise of increasing healthy nutrition and began disseminating all kinds of information, whether accurate or false.
Stanley N (1987) Production, properties and uses of carrageenan. In:McHugh DF (ed. Production and use of goods derived from commercial seaweeds, vol. FAO, Rome.
Review of the negative gastrointestinal effects of carrageenan in animal experiments by Tobacman JK (2001) Environ Health Perspect 109:983-994.
Consumption of carrageenan and other water-soluble polymers used as food additives and incidence of mammary carcinoma, Tobacman JK, Wallace RB, Zimmerman MB (2001). Med Hypotheses 56:589-598.
Both are red algae hydrocolloids that are utilized as food ingredients. Despite the fact that they both come from vegetables, there are some differences between the two:
We also find distinctions in gelation. In contrast to other hydrocolloids, the gel in agar is created solely by the hydrogen bonds formed between the molecules of agarose. Carrageenan, on the other hand, does need the additional “help” of other molecules, such as sugars or salts, in order to gel This means that using it may result in changes to the foods’ color, flavor, or odor.
The textures produced by each one are also different. On the one hand, agar gels are consistently powerful. Carrageenan can, however, create three different textures: iota (weak and elastic gels), kappa (strong and rigid gels), and lambda (which barely gels and provides viscosity).
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What are the Similarities Between Agar and Carrageenan?
Carrageenan and sodium alginate are added during the dosing process in artificial protein fibers and meat, proteins don’t need to age, and low- or unpurified protein solutions can be spun, increasing the strength and water absorption of the spun silk. Additionally, carrageenan can be used as a binder in the production of synthetic protein fibers used to create artificial meat.
Both food gums, agar and carrageenan, are made from seaweed extracts, but they differ greatly from one another. At a temperature of around 80°C, carrageenan dissolves in water to form a viscous, transparent, or slightly milky, easily flowable solution. Agar cannot form a gel unless the heated solution is cooled to below 40°C, as it does not dissolve into a solution below 85°C.
Carrageenan and water together increase viscosity, and when it interacts with proteins, it serves as an emulsifier and stabilizes the emulsion.
When agar is used in food formulations, sugar should be added to the hot agar solution. Agar typically gels when cooled to below 40°C and does not dissolve to a solution below 85°C. It is of unique industrial importance as it forms a fairly stable gel (gelatin) even at concentrations as low as 1%
It has a variety of uses, including thickening, coagulating, suspending, emulsifying, stabilizing, and preservative Agar is frequently employed as a biological culture medium or as a drug delivery system.