Will gum arabic stabilize a watery sorbet?
I’ve been struggling with getting an iced tea based sorbet to not end up as a chunk of ice; I believe the canonical answer here is “use a stabilizer.”
I grabbed some gum arabic (mastic to be specific) recently to play with gomme syrup for cocktails, which gave me an idea: will it stabilize a sorbet? It should have the nice advantage of not requiring cooking the way gelatins do, AFAIK it can be activated by blending.
Will this work to make a sorbet less icy? If so, what concentration should I use?
Best Answer
The base recipe for a sorbet is normally sugar water and fruit puree. Sorbets can also be made with juices or beverages like herbs or tea. The main cause of the "icy" texture is the high water content. To avoid that, you don't necessarily need a thickening/emulsifying agent (rather than a stabilizer per se). Normally those kind of additives are put in the base recipe to avoid the splitting of the sugar that may occur if the sorbet is kept for a long time, especially if it's made with a really watery juice (as lemon for example). On the market it's possible to find some sugar syrups made specifically for sorbet that contains pectin.
But even with a thickener introduced in the recipe the main things that keep a sorbet smooth and airy are sugar (for its anti-freezing properties, the higher the sugar softer the end product will be) and the air that gets incorporated in the sorbet during the mixing in an ice cream machine. Plus the trick to the perfect ice cream or sorbet is to mix it in the ice cream maker until it feel "dry" to the touch, this way it'll keep the proper texture longer.
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Quick Answer about "Will gum arabic stabilize a watery sorbet?"
Arabic gum easily soluble in hot or cold water but not soluble in alcohol or other organic solvents. Gum Arabic is used as a stabilizer for desserts such as ice cream and sherbet for its ability to absorb water.What can I use as a sorbet stabilizer?
Gelatin is another handy stabilizer. It adds great body to the base, which significantly reduces the size of the ice crystals that develop during freezing. 1 teaspoon of powdered gelatin or 2 sheets of sheet gelatin can improve a quart of base.What does sorbet stabilizer do?
This sorbet stabiliser, also known as Super Neutrose, is a combination of glucose syrup, locust bean gum and carrageenan, designed to stop crystals from forming as liquids sets. This ensures a smooth texture, and softer scoop. It also increases volume, and helps to slow melting as the ice is carried to table.Ice Cream Stabilizers? The Secret to a Perfect Homemade Ice Cream | WTF - Ep. 106
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