Pectin has long been used in the United States to make jams and jellies. It comes in two varieties, high-methoxyl (HM) and low-methoxyl (LM). HM Pectin works best with low pH ingredients while LM pectin is commonly used with high pH ingredients, especially to make jellies and jams.
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It is typical to use 0.3-1.0% for HM pectin and 0.5-3.0% for LM pectin applications.
Either pectin can be dispersed in cold water by blending, and then heated until it dissolves. The liquid is then cooled, causing the pectin to gel. HM pectin must be in acidic liquids with high sugar concentrations. LM pectin requires the presence of calcium to gel.
Modernist Cooking Made Easy: Getting Started covers many of the popular modernist techniques such as gelling, spherification, and foams. It also explores modernist ingredients like agar, sodium alginate, tapioca maltodextrin, and xanthan gum.
This article is by me, Jason Logsdon. I'm a passionate home cook who loves to try new things, especially when it comes to cooking. I've explored everything from sous vide and whipping siphons to pressure cookers and blow torches; created foams, gels and spheres; made barrel aged cocktails and brewed beer. I have also written 10 cookbooks on modernist cooking and sous vide and I run the AmazingFoodMadeEasy.com website.
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