How to Use Soy Lecithin
Soy lecithin is a powerful natural emulsifier. Chefs often use it to turn juices & sauces into foams (aka “airs”) which look lighter on the plate and have a different mouth feel. Because aroma plays a major role in our perception of flavor, foams may actually have a stronger flavor than the original liquid.
Here’s how you make a foam:
INGREDIENTS
- Ingredients:
- Soy Lecithin
- Water-Like Liquid to be Foamed (demonstrated with carrot juice)
- Equipment:
- Kitchen Scale
- Gram Scale
- Immersion (Stick) Blender
- Wide, Deep Container for Whipping
DIRECTIONS
This post assumes you already know the basics of how to use molecular gastronomy ingredients.
1
Weigh the liquid to be foamed & measure out the appropriate amount of lecithin.
For foams, try using a concentration of about 0.6% lecithin.
2
Put the liquid in the whipping container. Shake in the lecithin while blending to dissolve and distribute it.
3
When you’re ready to serve the foam, put the immersion blender back into the liquid. Turn it on, but angle it until it starts whipping air into the liquid. Try to find an angle that’s producing a lot of foam without breaking foam that you’ve already created.
4
Periodically skim foam off the surface of the liquid and use to sauce plates or in other applications.
Any leftover liquid can be stored in the fridge and whipped again, as necessary, to produce more foam.