Vegan. Agar, or agar-agar (E406), is a gelling agent made from red algae, so it is vegan. It is the standard plant-based substitute for gelatin in jellies, desserts and lab work.
Agar is the vegan answer to gelatin, a firm jelly set from seaweed. It has been doing this job in Asian kitchens for a very long time.
Made fromRed algae (seaweed)
E numberE406
VerdictVegan
Where it hides
Vegan jellies and desserts
Panna cotta and custard alternatives
Jam setting
Vegan aspic
What it is
Agar is a gel made from seaweed that sets firmer than gelatin and holds at room temperature, which is why it is the go-to plant gelling agent.
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a jelly-like substance consisting of polysaccharides obtained from the cell walls of some species of red algae
Where a recipe calls for gelatin, agar is the usual vegan replacement, whether you are setting a fruit jelly, a vegan panna cotta or the glossy layer on a tart. It gels more strongly than gelatin, so recipes use less, but it does the same job from a plant source.
GelatinGelatin is boiled animal collagen, usually from pig or cow skin and bone. There is no plant version; the plant swaps are agar, pectin and carrageenan.
Carrageenan (E407)Carrageenan is a thickener pulled from red seaweed. It has its critics on other grounds, but the vegan question is not one of them.
AspicAspic is the glossy jelly around a terrine or a pork pie. The shine is gelatin from simmered bones and meat, which puts it firmly on the animal side.
Gelatin substitutes: agar, carrageenan, and pectin, with the ratiosGuides · Agar, carrageenan, and pectin all set a liquid without gelatin, but none of them sets the way gelatin does, and spooning one in at the same amount is how a dessert turns to rubber or never sets.
Making vegan cheese at home: two different crafts wearing one nameGuides · One method gelatinizes starch into something that melts in twenty minutes, the other cultures a nut paste into something with real depth over days, and they are not substitutes for each other.
Frequently asked
Is agar-agar vegan?
Yes. Agar-agar is made from red algae, a seaweed, so it is plant-based and vegan. It is the classic substitute for gelatin.
Does agar set like gelatin?
It sets firmer and holds at room temperature, so it is not identical in texture, but it works as a vegan gelling agent in jellies, desserts and aspic.
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