Alginates

Derivatives of alginic acid — the sodium, calcium and potassium salts and propylene glycol alginate among them — used as stabilisers, thickeners and gelling agents in foods. They build body in ice cream, suspend pulp in fruit drinks, form the skins of restructured onion rings and the pearls of molecular gastronomy, and gel without heat the moment calcium arrives. Sourced mainly from brown seaweeds, they are prized for working in cold systems where other gellants demand boiling. Numbered E400 to E404, alginates are among the most versatile hydrocolloids in the formulator’s toolkit.