They fight together for Gluten Free-dom!
If you are new to Gluten Free Baking you may find yourself wondering, “What is the difference between Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum?” Both ingredients are frequently called for in gluten free recipes and can seem exotic at first, but they both serve the same general purpose as thickeners and emulsifiers. Quite simply, both these ingredients help keep your mixes mixed. They keep oil droplets from sticking together and separating, and solid particles from settling to the bottom. You can use just one or the other; or sometimes for the best results, you can use them in combination together.
In conventional recipes containing wheat, rye, barley or triticale flour, the protein, gluten in these fours serves the same purpose that guar gum and xanthan gum do in gluten free baking. Gluten protein is what traditional recipes rely on to thicken dough and batters, and trap air bubbles to make your baked goods light and fluffy. Xanthan gum tends to help starches combine to trap air, while guar gum helps keep large particles suspended in the mix.
One of the differences between the two products is where they come from. Guar gum is made from a seed native to tropical Asia, while xanthan gum is made by a micro organism called Xanthomonas Camestris.
In the kitchen, there are also important differences in using xanthan gum vs. guar gum. In general, guar gum is good for cold foods such as ice cream or pastry fillings, while xanthan gum is better for baked goods. Xanthan gum is the right choice for yeasted breads. Foods with a high acid content (such as lemon juice) can cause guar gum to lose its thickening abilities. For recipes involving citrus you will want to use xanthan gum or increase the amount of guar gum used.
In general, it is best to add both xanthan and guar gum to the oil component in a recipe, making complete mix of oil and gum before adding to the rest of liquid ingredients. Using a blender or a food processor is a great way to get the gums to dissolve properly.
The final difference between the two gums is the variation in quantities you will need for different foods. There are no hard and fast rules as to how to combine the two gums together, you’ll have to experiment yourself to see what works best in your recipes.
If you decide to use just one or the other, here are some helpful measurements for popular foods:
How much Xanthan Gum for Gluten Free Baking?
Cookies………………………………¼ teaspoon per cup of flour
Cakes and Pancakes………………..½ teaspoon per cup of flour
Muffins and Quick Breads………… ¾ teaspoon per cup of flour
Breads……………………………….1 to 1-½ tsp. per cup of flour
Pizza Dough…………………..…… 2 teaspoons per cup of flour
For Salad Dressings…Use ½ tsp. Xanthan Gum per 8 oz. of liquid.
How much Guar Gum for Gluten Free Baking?
Cookies………………………………¼ to ½ tsp. per cup of flour
Cakes and Pancakes………………..¾ teaspoon per cup of flour
Muffins and Quick Breads………….1 teaspoon per cup of flour
Breads……………………………….1-½ to 2 tsp. per cup of flour
Pizza Dough…………………..…….1 Tablespoon per cup of flour
For Hot Foods (gravies, stews , heated pudding)…Use 1-3 teaspoons per one quart of liquid.
For Cold Foods (salad dressing, ice creams, pudding) Use about 1-2 teaspoons per quart of liquid.
8/30/11 UPDATE: We are so pleased with the awesome response we get from this post and will do our best to answer any of your remaining questions. However, we have found that there are a lot of questions here that we don’t know much about- like ice cream making and salad dressings. Again, we will do our best, but we’re really only experts at baking with these two products.
6/11/12 UPDATE: Regarding corn in xanthan gum: The microorganism that produces xanthan gum is actually fed a glucose solution that is derived from wheat starch. Gluten is found in the protein part of the wheat kernel and no gluten is contained in the solution of glucose. Additionally, after the bacteria eats the glucose, there is no wheat to be found in the outer coating that it produces, which is what makes up xanthan gum. The short answer here is, there is no corn used at all in the making of xanthan gum.
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Best way to store xanthan gum??
Xanthan gum is best stored in an air-tight container in the fridge.
I am making orange (and lemon) syrups. The basic recipe is 2 C water, 2 C orange juice, 2 C sugar and juice of one lemon, mixed and simmered for 1/2 hour. The taste is great, but I thought I would like it a bit thicker, without cooking it down more. I was planning to use a bit of xanthum gum to thicken it, but read in a couple of places that xanthum gum doesn’t work in sugary liquids, and there are also problems with citrus. Do you have any advice on whether either xanthum or guar gum or both would work to thicken a citrus syrup? And if so, how much would you use?
Camilla,
I’ve not had a problem using xanthan gum to make a pie filling (berry), so it should work fine for the sugary syrups. We’re not exactly sure about whether the citrus would affect this or not, but I do know that folks use xanthan gum to thicken liquids for folks who need a liquid diet. I would imagine it will work. I’d suggest xanthan gum over guar gum, but not sure how much to recommend. I’d start with 1 tsp and go from there. Let us know how it comes out if you can, we’d love to learn!
Cassidy, I’m working with a local high school student who is interested in culinary arts and is working on her senior project about eating healthy while receiving food stamps. Is there someone at Bob’s who might be willing to do an informational interview with her? If you can refer us to someone, that would be great!
Jamie,
Please have your student contact us at marketing@bosbredmill.com and we’ll pass her along to the appropriate person.
My son is highly allergic to corn (among many others things). Everything I’ve researched claims that xanthan gum contains corn. Is this true or false? Thank you.
Melanie,
Most xanthan gum is grown on a medium that contains corn or soy. Our xanthan gum is grown on a different medium and does not contain corn or soy. It should be fine for your son.
I have allergies or sensitivities to both wheat and corn. (not just the gluten in wheat) I notice your 6/11/12 update indicates no corn, to which I am ecstatic…however, I notice that you say your medium is wheat starch, but indicate there is no wheat left at the end of the process. I am still concerned that your product could affect me. I would appreciate your thoughts on this. Thank you.
Honestly, we are not sure how this might affect you. We are not doctors and cannot advise you to try something that might cause an allergic reaction. The process of xanthan gum can be boiled down to this: xanthan gum is a creature, it eats wheat sugar (not protein), it then produces an outer “shell.” This “shell” is harvested and used to make xanthan gum. I recommend asking your allergist about this. I’m sorry that we cannot be of more help.
Hi, I was wondering if the liquid/oil/guar gum would solidify in the refrigerator and what might prevent that
David,
It shouldn’t solidify in the fridge.
I am looking for gluten and wheat free recipies. Pasta would be great! Should I use the Xanthan or Gar gum? I purchased KA gluten free flour and would like recipies from your product line as well.
Thank you for your time.
Hi Peg,
You can browse our recipe collection on our website http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes.php
Hi,
I trying to make rice milk and always results in a sedimentation formation. Which gum do you recommend to prevent sedimentation? Guar, Xanthan, or a mixture of both?
Thanks,
Miguel
Miguel,
We would recommend trying xanthan gum.
Ok, thank you. I’ll try it.
Cassidy -
I am working on switching to GF ‘real’ (or ‘clean’) food and my concern is the Xantham gum is not ‘real’ because it is alcohol precipitated and I realized that since this is a processed item, is BRM’s xg GMO-free?
Thank you.
Hi Mary,
Yes, our xanthan gum is GMO free.
Hi there,
Just a concern about the wheat part – my daughter has Celiacs disease, so I was dismayed to see that, am wondering now whether to switch over to Guar Gum, just to be safe.
Thank you
Sarah,
There is no wheat or gluten left in the xanthan gum after it is consumed. Our xanthan gum is safe for people with celiac disease. That said, I do know that some people cannot digest xanthan gum very well (gluten intolerant or not). If you feel more comfortable, guar gum is a good substitute.
Can you keep xanthan gum past the exp date. If you use is past the date , how long past the date can you use it? Same question for baking soda. Had both of these Bob’s Red mill products awhile.
Wanda,
If you have stored them in a dry, cool environment and a sealed container, they may be good for a while after the expiration date. Both will lose some of their functionality if they are no longer good.
Tread carefully here…….according to the following article…..some people may exhibit cross sensitivity to xanthan gum if they are sensitive to the product from which it is cultured. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xanthan_gum . Health warnings on a product have been required for premature infants for enterocolitis…….it is a bowel stimulant……and workers who produce the product have exhibited lung problems. I use it…….but after reviewing the wikipedia article, I will be more careful in both use and who I give it to.
My husband and son have Celiac disease. My husband does not tolerate xanthan gum and has the same symptoms as his celiac disease when he eats products with this in it. Guar gum is a much better substitution for him. It took me months to find out that xanthan gum was the culprit.
I’ve been diagnosed with a contact allergy to xanthan gum. Do you know if I can still eat baked goods that contain it? The dermatologist seemed to think the chemistry of xanthan changes after baking. Do you know? Thanks in advance.
If you have an allergy to xanthan gum, you should not eat baked goods with xanthan gum. We do not know how much the chemistry would change, but we wouldn’t recommend it.
Is there a healthier substitute for Xanthan gum. We want to make gluton free bread.
Thanks in advance.
Pat and joe
We recommend this post by Gluten Free Girl about substituting flax seed and chia seed in place of Xanthan Gum: http://glutenfreegirl.com/2011/02/chia-seeds-and-flaxseeds/.
Thanks for responding to my question about xanthan gum. I appreciate it!