Why use xanthan gum? It’s a must-have in a lot of low carb baked goods, especially bread. Xanthan gum helps hold all of the ingredients together, unlike some other gluten-free breads that end up looking like a pile of crumbs. A small amount can go a long way: You only need about a half a teaspoon for most recipes. For breads, you’ll usually use a full teaspoon.
What exactly does xanthan gum do? It binds the ingredients together and can act as a substitute for gluten. Gluten enables bread to rise because it traps air bubbles and allows them to grow. This ingredient can substitute by doing the same thing.
Xanthan gum doesn’t function as yeast/leavener; it mimics the function of gluten. It actually turns the dough gummy and sticky, which enables the dough to trap gas bubbles from the yeast (or other leavener like baking soda), which in turn allows the dough to rise. Imagine if you will a large piece of bubble gum. That’s the texture of a normal flour dough, and with Xanthan gum, that will also be the approximate texture of your gluten free, low carb dough.
Does Xanthan Gum Ferment?
So, does it actually ferment? Does it replace yeast? Xanthan gum is made by fermentation, it does not itself ferment. Many things are made by fermentation. In the case of Xanthan gum, sugars are digested by bacteria, and they excrete Xanthan gum. An example is vanilla. Vanilla flavor is created by the fermentation of vanilla bean pods. But it doesn’t itself ferment or create fermentation in cooking.
Possible substitutes for Xanthan gum are Guar gum, gelatin powder, psyllium hust and ground flaxseed. These do help hold things together. However, numerous people say that they don’t work quite as well as Xanthan gum does.
Make sure you use a gluten free version as most that are not gluten-free are made from wheat.
Find Recipes That Use Xanthan Gum
Lemon Coconut Cream Cheese Cake
Where To Buy Xanthan Gum Australia
You can purchase xanthan gum right here in Australia from HERE.
Use code WELCOME10 to get 10% off your order.
Xanthan gum helps hold low carb flours together. It binds the ingredients together and can act as a substitute for gluten. You only need a half a teaspoon for most keto low carb recipes. This packet will make 100+ keto recipes (1 tsp = 1g)
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The Xanthan Gum I Use
