Apple Cider Agar Gel Cubes Recipe

These gel cubes are super easy to put together and they make a great small bite for people to enjoy. The quality of the cider you use will directly relate to how good the gels turn out. Here in New England I can get great apple cider from many of the orchards around me but many stores sell high quality cider as well.

I usually like to coat these cubes in a cinnamon-sugar mixture for extra flavor and sweetness, but sometimes I like to leave them uncoated so the cider can really shine by itself. Once you add the sugar you have to serve them quickly. These cider gels can be served hot or cold because they are made using agar.

I call for 1.0% agar in this recipe but you can lower that if you'd like a softer gel. These gels are very brittle if you just use agar in them. If you prefer a more elastic and chewy gel you can replace some of the agar with locust bean gum.

In the video I dip the gel cubes in the sugar before putting them out. That works pretty good as long as you serve them quickly, but for longer parties I've found leaving a bowl of them out with toothpicks and a bowl of the sugar coating works great. That way people can use as much sugar as they want and the gels will be fine sitting out for several hours.

Also, if you are just getting started experimenting with molecular gastronomy and modernist cuisine then I highly recommend one of these molecular gastronomy kits. They have everything you need to do many different dishes.