Thickeners and jelly

[toodlepipsky]

Hello all!

Recently, I've been reading a lot about various thickening agents which can be used instead of gelatin and other adhesive non-vegan products. Basically, I read about
1. Chia seeds
2. Psyllium
3. Irish mossMy question is, from your experience, which would be more suitable for what kind of food (ice creams, cake fillings, breads etc

Comments

[inquiet]

i like using agar for jello shots.
i'll use arrowroot or cornstarch too, depending [these last two i use more in recipes for stir fries and sauces].
but i have never heard of using any of the others to thicken. and beyond chia seeds, i've never seen any of the things you mentioned in a store. agar, arrowroot, and cornstarch can all be found at the regular grocery or whole foods, or even the local asian market.

as far as ice cream goes, i make it like we made it in middle school: mix vanilla and milk -rice does fine, have not tried any others- and put in a bag. put that bag into a larger bag that's full of ice and salt. toss until done.
what sort of cake filling are you trying to make?
and what bread do you want to make that needs a thickening agent? i mean, bread is mostly yeast, flour, oil and water where i come from.

[mangiati_vivi]

"and what bread do you want to make that needs a thickening agent? i mean, bread is mostly yeast, flour, oil and water where i come from."

My thoughts exactly. :) Not saying it's impossible, but I'm pretty into bread and haven't come across any that need such a thing.

[toodlepipsky]

I'm aware of agar and cornstarch (though arrowrot is a litle nonexistant here, as are asian markets) I was wondering about other substances.

As for cake fillings, I recently made a three-layer birthday cake for my BF and hoped to get thick layers of filling between the cake dough like in fancy professional cakes and stuff my uncle used to make only with eggs. I got a squishy pudding and not much bravado in the cake. I read some of these are used to thicken cake fillings so I wondered.

And bread, I tried, and got pita bread then read that psyllium is used in bread so I wondered.

[inquiet]

for the cake filling are you wanting a fondant? there are a ton of recipes if you google, and most seem to rely on agar and corn syrup.

or are you wanting something more like an eclair filling? for fruitier things, i really think agar just works more like gelatin than most other subs, at least the kinds of subs you can actually buy in a store. for a more creamier filling, i'd use a frosting recipe and just thin it a little.

and psyllium husk is generally added to add back in some fiber to foods that either never had it, or had most of the fiber processed away. every pita or grill bread recipe i've ever used is still those few basics, the prep is just a little different.

[mangiati_vivi]

I doubt she'd want to use fondant to fill a cake - it'd be like fillng it with playdough. ;)

And depending on the type of filling, you may be able to get a thicker, creamier effect by whipping it, or refrigerating it, or a combination of those two. When I make ganache, I can get two or three different textures out of it depending on what I do with it after it's made.

[toodlepipsky]

Does agar leave some kind of seaweedy aftertaste or is it completely tasteless?

Basically, I'm not too partial about the texture of the filling though I'd like it to hold the cake when I slice it and lay it on plates so that the slice won't break at the filling and the cake slice would be able to stand on its own.

[inquiet]

completely tasteless. i really think it's the closest thing to gelatin you can buy on the market. it's an almost transparent powder, which if you put enough of it into liquid, it can hold up just like jello. if you use less, you could just get more of a thickening though.
and when i usually frost stuff, i tend to make my own. i just dump in some powdered sugar and add milk bit by bit, whipping all the time. if it gets too runny, you add more sugar, if it gets too thick, you keep adding milk. it's the easiest frosting recipe ever.

[toodlepipsky]

COOl, thanks for the tips!