Champion's Leaf Gelatine (aka Sheet gelatin) and Powder Gelatine are both unflavored gelatine, and are excellent, versatile thickeners for both sweet and savory cooking. Gelatine dissolves into a thin, clear, flawless sauce when mixed with a liquid. Once it cools, however, the liquid with thicken or firm-up into a flavorful solid. The unique properties of gelatine allow that solid to become fluid again as soon as it hits the warmth of your mouth. No other food ingredient in the kitchen can do this! From a perfectly reduced sauce's shimmering glaze to the heavenly mouth-feel of a rich panna cotta, Champion's Culinary Gelatine is the secret the pros use.
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CULINARY GELATINE | WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?
Gelatine is a protein derived from the collagen in animal tissue, and it’s the only protein in the kitchen that is able to thicken liquids. This effect can be observed when roasting meat: drippings in the bottom of the roasting pan will be sticky and are effectively a form of unrefined gelatin. The stickiness and viscosity of this unrefined gelatine allows the juices to be boiled into a luscious sauce without adding much additional thickening agent (IE flour, and/or corn starch etc).If you let the juices from the roast meat cool in the refrigerator, this gelatine is the reason the juice will solidify, or turn into a sort of meat flavored jelly! Unlike opaque and creamy sauces thickened with flour or corn starch, sauces thickened with gelatin are extremely clear and more of a syrup consistency. Our Culinary Gelatine is produced from pig skin - the industry standard - which by weight, contains about 30% collagen. Collagen is the connective tissue in protein that gives it it's strength. It is found in the muscles and tendons and gives our skin it's ability to stretch stay firm, as well as rigidity to our bones. For more information on the amazing attributes of Collagen and how it can benefit your body, please visit our page all about Collagen. It really is amazing stuff! To make gelatine, raw materials (for culinary gelatine, pig skins) are soaked in an acid for many hours, which unravels the protein bonds in the underlying collagen. These protein chains are extracted, filtered, purified, and dried into sheets, granules, or a fine powder. |
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CULINARY GELATINE | HOW DOES IT WORK?
Gelatin is unlike any other protein used in the kitchen. Typically, food proteins respond to heat by unraveling, then bonding to one another and coagulating into a firm, solid mass. For example, think of a frying egg. The liquid protein of the white, called albumin, firms up into a solid mass of egg white as it heats. But gelatin proteins don’t readily form bonds with one another. Heat causes them to initially unravel and disperse just like any protein. They never form new bonds, though, so the liquid in which they’re dispersed stays fluid. Because gelatin proteins are long and stringy, they tend to become interwoven, causing the hot liquid in which they are suspended to thicken, but not completely solidify when warm. As gelatin cools (as in a pan of cooled meat drippings), the protein strands line up next to each other and twist into long ropes, transforming the liquid into a firm gel. |
ABOVE: Professional Pastry Chefs work with Champion's Culinary Gelatine.
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IN THE KITCHEN | HANDLING GELATINE
The first step to using Champion's Culinary Gelatine - either our Powder Gelatine, or our Leaf Gelatine - is to soak it in a cool liquid, for about 5 minutes or so, to hydrate it. This helps ensure it will dissolve easily. It is recommended you take this step: if you add the gelatine directly to a hot liquid, it can stick together and form lumps and be difficult to fully dissolve. After soaking the gelatine, simply heat the mixture - or add it directly to a hot liquid - and stir it continuously to dissolve the gelatin into your mixture. Gelatine is naturally very hydroscopic - it readily absorbs and retains water very easily - so be sure to store it in an airtight container in a dry, clean area. When stored correctly it can have a nearly indefinite shelf life!
CULINARY GELATINE | LEAF AND POWDER GELATINE DIFFERENCES
Chefs generally prefer sheet gelatin to powdered gelatin because sheet gelatin has less surface area, so when the hydrated sheets are stirred into the hot liquid, less air becomes incorporated, creating better clarity in the finished gel. Sheet gelatin isn’t as readily available as powdered, but you can easily substitute powdered for sheets using this equation: 4 gelatin sheets = 1-1/4 oz. envelope (2-1/2 tsp.) powdered gelatin. That’s enough to lightly gel about 2 cups of liquid, creating a 1-1/2% gelatin solution, which is perfect for savory sauces and glazes. For a firmer effect, such as that in a typical gelatin dessert, use the same amount of gelatin to gel 1 cup of liquid, creating a 3% gelatin solution.
The first step to using Champion's Culinary Gelatine - either our Powder Gelatine, or our Leaf Gelatine - is to soak it in a cool liquid, for about 5 minutes or so, to hydrate it. This helps ensure it will dissolve easily. It is recommended you take this step: if you add the gelatine directly to a hot liquid, it can stick together and form lumps and be difficult to fully dissolve. After soaking the gelatine, simply heat the mixture - or add it directly to a hot liquid - and stir it continuously to dissolve the gelatin into your mixture. Gelatine is naturally very hydroscopic - it readily absorbs and retains water very easily - so be sure to store it in an airtight container in a dry, clean area. When stored correctly it can have a nearly indefinite shelf life!
CULINARY GELATINE | LEAF AND POWDER GELATINE DIFFERENCES
Chefs generally prefer sheet gelatin to powdered gelatin because sheet gelatin has less surface area, so when the hydrated sheets are stirred into the hot liquid, less air becomes incorporated, creating better clarity in the finished gel. Sheet gelatin isn’t as readily available as powdered, but you can easily substitute powdered for sheets using this equation: 4 gelatin sheets = 1-1/4 oz. envelope (2-1/2 tsp.) powdered gelatin. That’s enough to lightly gel about 2 cups of liquid, creating a 1-1/2% gelatin solution, which is perfect for savory sauces and glazes. For a firmer effect, such as that in a typical gelatin dessert, use the same amount of gelatin to gel 1 cup of liquid, creating a 3% gelatin solution.
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ADDITIONAL CONTENT
Blog Recipes What is Collagen? Why take Collagen? |