You’ll learn what gelation is and how it can transform your dishes. You’ll discover different types of gelling agents along with their advantages and limitations. You’ll understand what happens during various gelation processes, developing the judgment to know which gelling agent to use, and how to use it.

You’ll see many different gelled textures, learn the characteristics of each gelling agent, and discover how knowing these theoretical aspects gives you more freedom to create new dishes. You’ll be able to improve the texture of preparations you already make, and understand why a recipe test might fail.

We will distinguish between traditional and modern gelation and take an in depth look at the most common gelling ingredients on the market. For each gelling agent, we’ll demonstrate two examples of its application, highlighting its advantages and disadvantages. In addition, we’ll include examples of final dishes where the technique is applied—alongside others from molecular gastronomy—to showcase how aesthetically striking, creative, and functional a gelled texture can be, and the potential it can have in your restaurant dishes.

Sangria Fruit Paste: This common application of HM pectin is often used in restaurants to deliver one of the most reliable petit fours.

Red Pepper and Vanilla Jam: LM pectin is able to gel with very little sugar. We take advantage of this to make a jam using a savory ingredient that will be integrated into a savory dish. We could also make sweet jams with a perfect, stable texture and very little sugar, both lightening the recipe and reducing the cooking time required when compared to traditional jams.

Vegan Hazelnut Cream: To demonstrate a lesser-known use of pectins, we’ll use an LMA-grade pectin, optimized for use in fatty and dairy ingredients—or in the presence of calcium. It freezes perfectly and is thermo reversible, so in addition to being ideal for glazes, it allows the creation of creamy, stable textures (cremeux, mousse bases, etc.)

Faux Caviar with Agar: Prepare another iconic technique born at elBulli, starting with the direct spherification technique. Faux caviar is the best way to understand hysteresis and, at the same time, a great plating resource for adding volume and dynamism, delivering bold flavor and a playful touch.

Hot Thai Curry Gel: One of the most visually striking uses of agar. Gel a veil that provides a very eye-catching finish. This creates the opportunity to add another layer of flavor, and it can be manipulated to encapsulate creams (for example, cannelloni or ravioli).

Grated Cilantro Gelatin: An application that leverages the rigidity and firmness achievable with gellan gum. This technique adds volume, dynamism a pleasant mouthfeel. It can be used in savory or sweet dishes, and can also be added to hot dishes, thanks to its heat resistance.

Thermostable Cake Filling: A gel that can be used as a filling for baked goods because it will retain its shape, color, and structure.  A useful solution for many kinds of products, especially those where moisture is a major issue (for example, puff pastry).

Game “Macaroni”: Inspired by the macaroni served at Disfrutar. This dish follows the same concept— to offer a pasta that isn’t pasta, with the same look and handling, but much lighter, and with added flavor.

Roasted Pumpkin Bonbon: We’ll illustrate another use of kappa gum by encapsulating a gelatin core.

Mushroom Panna Cotta: Take advantage of iota to lightly gel a purée.

Chocolate Flan: Tap into the great potential of iota within dairy-free and egg-free desserts—whether for vegan desserts or allergy-driven substitutions—we propose a 100% vegan dessert with chocolate, ratafia, and spices.

elBulli Meringue: Another of the most widespread uses of methylcellulose is as a booster for baked meringues and airy textures. From elBulli’s legendary apple meringue to many “pórex”-style recipes, adding methylcellulose is an easy, very useful way to reduce sweetness.

Faux Yolk (by mechanical spherification): In this recipe we’ll confirm the ability of this powdered plant-based gelling agent to deliver a perfect encapsulation almost instantaneously.

Beetroot Veil: Another case of a plant-based gelling agent used to make veils, so we can compare its use with agar-agar and elastic agar.

In this course, in addition to the recipes, you’ll also learn different cooking techniques that will be useful on many occasions.

The techniques you’ll learn are:

• How to hydrate gelatin
• How to grate hard gelatin
• How to activate and set pectin
• Savory or low-sugar jams
• Spherifications in oil
• How to make dairy-free creams
• How to make sugar-free meringues
• How to make hot gelatin
• How to make an egg-free flan
• How to make veils (2 shapes)
• How to encapsulate sauces and creams in a “faux yolk” style