How do you make Chia gel?
You might have heard plenty of great things about chia seeds, but one of the most amazing properties is they are hydrophilic (water-loving). All you will need to do is add water to your chia seeds, and in a few moments, they’ll become a gel. This is a result of the chia seed’s high concentration of soluble fibre. The result is a gel-like substance which encases the chia seed when it’s exposed to water.
Adding them also makes them a great deal easier to use in recipes. As an additional bonus, Chia gel may even absorb the flavour of any food that you include these in. This chia seed gel may be used in countless recipes as a substitute for fats without compromising taste. You could even bake with chia gel using it to cut oils and eggs. The first time you attempt chia Seed Bread, you’ll be surprised at how soft and moist it is when compared to high-calorie bread. As a result of this, I like to maintain some chia gel available in my fridge since it’s an essential part of so many chia seed recipes.
But searching the Internet, I have seen an assortment of chia gel recipes, each calling for a different proportion of chia seeds and water. So I decided to test many different ratios. After much trial and error, I have decided what I believe to be the ideal ratio for making great chia seed gel.
The gel can remain unspoiled for about 2 weeks so making it beforehand and maintain a small bowl on-hand from the refrigerator can be quite handy and save a little preparation time.
Chia Seeds in Water Ratio
The magical ratio: 1 part chia seeds to 12 parts water.
This ratio makes sense as a lot of this scientific study on chia seeds indicates that they consume twelve times their weight in water. Therefore using this ratio, you’ll find the most amount of absorption from your chia seeds.
If you prefer a thicker chia gel, you can return to a 1:8 ratio that works out to be 1 oz of chia seeds for each 1 cup of water. Notice that the chia seed gel will have the capability to absorb another half cup of water so make sure you plan accordingly on your recipe.
I believe a lot of the confusion and the reason you see other the recipes call for a greater ratio of chia seeds into water is that a single tablespoon of chia seeds is often thought to represent half an ounce of chia. However, in measuring one tbsp of chia seeds using my handy kitchen scale, I discovered a flat tablespoon is far closer to a third of an ounce. To find a half an ounce of chia seeds, you will need a heaping tablespoon.
Chia gel is also used to substitute butter or eggs in recipes. I use about one tablespoon of the gel to substitute one egg. For butter, it’s ideal to use 1/2 the quantity of butter and 1/2 of the exact identical amount of the gel that’s suggested in the recipe. This is terrific for those people who would like to decrease the cholesterol, fat, gluten free and dairy content in their diet.
Chia Gel Recipe
Ingredients
1 to 2 tablespoons of Chia seeds
1 cup of water or fresh/prepared fruit juice (depending what you want to add the gel to)
In a bowl, wisk the seeds and liquid together and leave it to stand for a 10 to 15 minutes. Make sure to stir periodically to prevent it from clumping up. Once the time is up you will see the seeds have absorbed most of the liquid. Now it is ready to use in your recipe or for storage in your refrigerator.
The fruity Chia gel is good to eat on its own like a pudding or it can be mixed in with ice cream, yogurt or oatmeal. We give the gel to our son and he loves it. The gel will add a nice nutritional boost to anything you add it to. It is especially good for those people that are allergic to gluten and can add a nice variety to their diet.
Chia gel must be refrigerated. You should keep it in a covered container as well so that it does not absorb any food flavours from the fridge. I like to use a glass container instead of a plastic one so there is no danger of harmful chemicals seeping into the Chia gel. As mentioned earlier, you can store the gel for up to 2 weeks. I label the jar and after 2 weeks is up I clean it out and make a new batch. More often than not, I’m making a new batch way before the 2 weeks has even come close to coming.
- How to Make Chia Seed Gel
- Chia Seed Gel
- Chia Seeds in Water Ratio
- Chia Gel Recipe
- Chia Seeds to Water Ratio
