Guar Gum Powder

Guar Gum Powder

Guar gum, also called guaran, is a galactomannan. It is primarily the ground endosperm of guar beans. The guar seeds are dehusked, milled and screened to obtain the guar gum. It is typically produced as a free-flowing, off-white powder. Guar gum is a polysaccharide composed of the sugars galactose and mannose. The backbone is a linear chain of β 1, 4-linked mannose residues to which galactose residues are 1, 6-linked at every second mannose, forming short side-branches.

Culinary uses of Guar Gum powder:-

1. Guar gum is a hydrocolloid particularly useful for making thick pastes without forming a gel and for keeping water bound in a sauce or emulsion.
2. Guar gum can be used for cottage cheese, sauces, soups and frozen desserts.
3. Guar gum is also a good source of fiber with 80% soluble dietary fiber on a dry weight basis.
4. Guar gum is often used in ice creams to improve texture and in gluten-free baking to provide some of the structure that is lost when gluten is removed. Guar can be used to make dondurma, a traditional "chewy" Turkish ice cream.
5. Guar gum in combination with xanthan gum to make a fluid of apple juice and olive oil.

Health Benefits of Guar Gum

1. Guar gum is used as a laxative. It is also used for treating diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), obesity, and diabetes; for reducing cholesterol; and for preventing “hardening of the arteries” (atherosclerosis).
2. Guar gum is used as a thickening, stabilizing, suspending, and binding agent.
3. Guar gum is used as a binding agent in tablets, and as a thickening agent in lotions and creams.
4. Guar Gum is also useful in weight loss schedule because it expands in the intestine, causing a sense of fullness. This may decrease appetite.