Panacotta with agar-agar: recipe with photo

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Those who have tried Italian panna cotta at least once will not be able to resist the temptation the next time. In this dessert, the most delicate creamy taste is ideally combined with a light aroma of vanilla to give the sweet tooth a real pleasure. However, panna cotta can be enjoyed even on a diet, if you make it with milk. And this world-famous dessert can be prepared for vegetarians. Photos and recipes of panna cotta with agar-agar are presented in our article.

Dessert story

The birthplace of panna cotta is the Italian northwestern region of Piedmont. It was here that a dessert was first invented and prepared, reminiscent of cream pudding in appearance and texture. Its name comes from the Italian words panna kotta, which means "boiled cream".

Today, gelatin or agar-agar is used in the preparation of dessert. But it wasn't like thatalways. Initially, in order to achieve the desired consistency, fish bones were boiled in cream. In addition, a dessert without sugar was prepared, since it was too expensive for the Italians. But today, vanilla, spices, and berry sauce are added to panna cotta. It is he who so successfully sets off the taste of delicate pudding.

Some confectioners believe that the correct panna cotta can only be prepared on the basis of gelatin. This statement is partly true, because it was this ingredient that was used in the original recipe. But today panna cotta is prepared on agar-agar as well. And it turns out even more tender and tasty than gelatin.

Classic agar-agar panna cotta recipe: ingredients

To prepare a traditional Italian dessert, you will need the following products from the list:

• 33% fat cream - 300 ml;
• milk - 150 ml;
• sugar - 80g;
• vanilla - 1g;
• agar-agar -1 tsp.

Thus, a classic panna cotta is prepared from cream, agar-agar and milk with the addition of sugar and vanilla. In addition, you need to prepare a saucepan that is suitable for heating the ingredients, as well as bowls or glasses for decorating the dessert.

Step-by-step preparation: how to work with agar-agar

Not everyone is familiar with the properties of this gelling component. But agar-agar is a vegetable substitute for gelatin, which is of animal origin. You need to work with him differently. Unlike gelatin, agar-agardissolves at temperatures above 90 ° C, and solidifies at 40 degrees. In addition, you need very little of it, otherwise the dessert will turn into a solid mass.

The following step-by-step instructions will tell you how panna cotta with agar-agar is prepared:

1. Pour cream and milk into a saucepan. Add vanilla, sugar and agar agar. Stir the ingredients together.
2. Put the saucepan on the fire and bring its contents to a boil.
3. Because agar-agar from different manufacturers has different gelling properties, before cooling the dessert, you need to check the correct proportion of the gelling agent. To do this, you need to scoop up a little creamy mixture with a teaspoon and send it to the freezer for 40 seconds. If the mass turned out to be tender and soft, then you can proceed to the next stage of preparation. If the creamy mixture has become solid, you need to add a little more liquid and, conversely, introduce more agar-agar. The main advantage of this gelling agent is that it can be heated innumerable times.

Dessert decorating and cooling

Panacotta on agar-agar solidifies even at room temperature. Therefore, if you leave the boiled creamy mass in a saucepan, then as it cools, it will turn from a liquid state into a solid one. That is why, as soon as the agar-agar dissolves in boiling cream and milk, the saucepan must be removed from the fire.

Hot creamy mass can be poured into bowls, glasses, silicone molds. In the latter case, panna cotta will be very easy to remove from the mold and transfer toplate. If you prepare dessert in a glass, it should be served in it.

The panna cotta poured into molds should be cooled slightly at room temperature, then sent to the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. Very soon it will be possible to feast on the most delicate and delicious dessert.

How and when to serve panna cotta?

Dessert is traditionally served in small portions. When serving, panna cotta is poured over with berry, chocolate or caramel sauce and decorated with pieces of fruit. At home, regular summer berry jam is also suitable.

According to the recipe, panna cotta on agar-agar, as well as on gelatin, is poured into glass glasses or forms, from which the dessert will later be easily removed, for example, from silicone. Instead of sauce and jam, grated chocolate or cocoa can be used for serving and decoration.

Berry panna cotta sauce

Delicate Italian dessert has the texture of berry pudding. The taste of panna cotta is pleasant, creamy, moderately sweet. But you just want to dilute it with fresh berry notes. To do this, according to the recipe, panna cotta with agar-agar is poured on top with a sauce specially prepared for this. You can cook it in literally 5 minutes:

1. Pour 1 cup of fresh berries into a saucepan. Any will do, but raspberries or strawberries are best.
2. Pour 3 tbsp on top of the berries. l. sugar and add 2 tsp. lemon juice. Stir ingredients.
3. Put the saucepan on the stove and bring the berries withsugar and juice to a boil. Cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add 1 more glass of berries to the hot mass. At the same time, remove the saucepan from the heat.
5. Cool the sauce to room temperature. When serving, pour them over chilled panna cotta.

Tenderest sour cream panna cotta

When preparing the dessert according to the following recipe, in addition to cream and milk, one secret ingredient is used. This is sour cream. It is with her that the best panna cotta on agar-agar is obtained (pictured).

Step by step dessert recipe looks like this:

1. Pour 1 cup of milk into a small saucepan. Add 1 tsp to it. agar-agar, mix and leave for 5 minutes at room temperature.
2. Place the saucepan over low heat and, stirring occasionally, bring the contents to a boil. Boil milk with agar-agar for 2 minutes.
3. Add 2 tbsp. heavy cream, ½ tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract and a pinch of s alt.
4. Bring the mixture back to a boil. Remove the pot from the heat after 5 minutes. Allow the creamy mixture to cool slightly.
5. Sour cream 20% fat (1 tbsp.) Beat with a mixer for 5 minutes. Gradually pour warm creamy mass into it. Continue whisking for a couple more minutes until the mixture is smooth and without lumps. Pour immediately into glasses.
6. The amount of ingredients indicated in the recipe should make 6 servings of gourmet panna cotta.
7. Dessert store in the refrigerator until completely solidified. This may take 4 to 6 hours.

Panacotta on coconut milk with agar-agar

This is one of the most popular vegan desserts. It just needs agar-agar, which, unlike gelatin, has a vegetable origin. Instead of milk and cream, coconut milk is used, which is very popular with true vegans. Cooking such a panna cotta is no more difficult than a traditional one.

The dessert recipe consists of the following steps:

1. Agar-agar (2 g or 1 tsp) pour 50 ml of water, mix and leave on the table for 15 minutes.
2. Put a saucepan with water and a gelling agent on fire, let it boil. Stirring constantly, cook agar-agar for 1 minute.
3. Pour coconut milk (400 ml) into a small saucepan. Set it in a water bath. This is necessary so that the coconut milk does not burn. Stirring is optional.
4. Heat the coconut milk to 50°C. Add sugar (80 g) and vanillin (3 g) to it. Introduce agar-agar dissolved in hot water. Stir and cook in a water bath for 5 minutes.
5. Coconut agar panna cotta is almost ready. It remains only to pour the mixture prepared in a water bath into molds or low glasses.
6. Remove the dessert in a cold place for 2-3 hours.
7. Coconut panna cotta is recommended to be served with fresh berries.

Low calorie panna cotta without gelatin and cream

This four-layer dessert will appeal to anyone who is in a grueling struggle with extra pounds. Atthe preparation of such a panna cotta does not use either gelatin or heavy cream. Thanks to this, the calorie content of the dessert is less than that provided by the classic recipe.

Panacotta with agar-agar is prepared as follows:

1. Pour 1 liter of milk into a medium saucepan and stir in 3 tsp. gelling component. In this case, it will be agar-agar.
2. Put a pot of milk on the stove, bring to a boil. Introduce sugar to taste and cocoa (2 tablespoons) into the milk mixture. Without stopping stirring, cook the mass for 2 minutes.
3. Pour half of the resulting chocolate sauce into prepared glasses. This will be the first layer of panna cotta.
4. Send the glasses to the refrigerator for 1 hour.
5. Leave the unused chocolate mass in the pan. It will still be needed to form the third layer. To do this, it will only be enough to warm it up.
6. Cook a classic espresso in a Turkish pot or coffee maker. To prepare the dessert, you will need 40 ml of coffee.
7. In a separate saucepan, dilute agar-agar in milk, but only use pre-brewed coffee instead of cocoa.
8. Pour half of the coffee mass into glasses and cool.
9. Warming up the rest of the chocolate mass, make the third layer of panna cotta. Then chill the dessert.
10. Repeat the last layer of panna cotta in the same way.
11. Decorate the finished dessert with whipped cream and grated chocolate.

Cooking secrets and recommendations

There are some nuances in panna cotta recipes with agar-agar:

1. Traditional white panna cottacolor, vanilla flavor. But if you use fruit or berry syrup, cocoa or coffee when cooking, then the dessert will sparkle with completely new colors.
2. To dissolve agar-agar in a liquid, it must be constantly stirred. Otherwise, it may burn to the bottom of the pot.
3. When preparing panna cotta on agar, the acidity of the liquid also matters. If you add juice to milk, then you will need more gelling agent than in the traditional recipe.