April 5, 2011 - 3:16pm
Inclusion of various 'gum' in products, fillings...
When making a cream cheese (or other) filling for danish, and such variations it is used for; I read one recipe including 'guar or xanthum gum'. I never see it other wise in recipes and would like guidance on a ratio, amount for it's use. What exactly it does... I now have looked for it and see it listed in bread and many items. Are there any articles about this? Why, when it is used??
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guar or xanthum gum is used in gluten-free recipes. I have never been interested in the subject because we don't have any gluten itolerance symptoms. Thanks God!
http://www.theglutenfreelife.com/xanthanguar-gum/
they give cohesion to ingredients that otherwise wouldn't have any way to bind to each other and keep together. In gluten-free levained products they play the role that gluten plays in wheat (but with the huge difference that gluten is also elastic and extensible, unlike gums). When in contact with water they swell and give a gelly structure to the compound they are part of.
Often gums are also emulsifiers, acting as a bridge between water and fats that otherwise would neither mix nor bind.
They are always used in tiny amounts.