The market · Acids and agents · East Asia, Southeast Asia

Agar

A setting agent from red seaweed. It dissolves only near the boil and sets firm as it cools to about 35–40°C, into a brittle gel that weeps clear liquid — which is what makes it a clarifier.

neutral · firm · brittle

Kinds

Powder
Consistent strength — the one to weigh.
Strips and bars (kanten)
For Japanese and Southeast Asian sweets; strength varies.

If you can't find it

Asian grocers and health food shops, as powder or strands.

  1. 1Gelatine
    Much more of it — test a spoonful on a cold plate
    You lose agar's firm, heat-stable set; gelatine melts at body heat.

Goes with

lime juicegrapefruitcoconut watersugar

Knowing it

Where to buy
Powder, from Asian grocers or modernist suppliers. Flakes and strips are weaker and less predictable.
Worth knowing
Quick agar clarification: weigh the juice and use 0.2% agar (2g per litre). Whisk the agar into a quarter of the juice — or into water, for lime, which tastes cooked if boiled — and boil a minute. Whisk it into the rest at room temperature, set it in an ice bath, break the gel up and let it drain through muslin with only gentle squeezing. Clarified lime is best the same day.

Kitchens that keep it in

New York, Mexico City, London, BarcelonaThe cocktail barSpirit, acid and sugar balanced to the gram — and lately a lab's worth of technique: clarifying, fat-washing, infusing, carbonating, until a drink can taste of a whole dish.9 classics · 4 cooked here

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