Agar: A flower of health and industry that bloomed in a barren land

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Agar is a processed food made by freezing or drying seaweed from the sea.

It was so precious that it is said that people who fled during the Korean War carried it around to relieve their hunger, washed it clean after defecating, and ate it again.

It has almost no nutrients, but it provides a feeling of fullness, so it was an important food that relieved people’s hunger in the past when things were poor.

Differences from jelly and gelatin: Unique characteristics of agar

It looks similar to jelly, acorn jelly, and tofu, which are commonly boiled and hardened, but agar is a completely different food.

Also, it has a similar texture to gelatin, but gelatin is a type of protein extracted from animal collagen that is broken down by hydrolytic enzymes, while agar is a polysaccharide extracted from seaweed.

It has almost no taste or flavor, so it is mainly used to create a chewy texture like jelly.

Diet and Health: The Hidden Value of Agar

Agar has recently been gaining attention as a diet food.
A representative example is the use of agar in konjac products, and agar is also the main ingredient in sweet jelly.
Although it looks like ordinary and unremarkable seaweed, it contains nutrients that play an important role in our diet.

A variety of seaweeds live in the ocean, including coral reefs, kelp, and tangle, brown algae, laver and laver, green algae, and agar and seaweed are red algae.
Chlorella, which was once in the spotlight as a future food resource and even traveled to space, is also a type of green algae.

Agar in Korea: History and Present

In Korea, agar is made by boiling and cooling seaweed such as seaweed, and has properties similar to gelatin.
In particular, it has been mass-produced in Miryang, Gyeongsangnam-do, and it is a refreshing delicacy when sliced ​​thinly and eaten in soybean soup in the summer.

Preventing constipation and promoting bowel movements: The amazing efficacy of agar

One of the important functions of agar is that it prevents constipation by increasing the volume of the large intestine without being digested, and its sticky nature helps smooth bowel movements.

Coagulation and moisturizing power: Use in the food industry

Agar, the raw material of umu, has a strong coagulation power compared to jelly, does not spoil easily, and has excellent hydrophilicity, making it excellent in retaining moisture.

Thanks to these characteristics, it is widely used as an ingredient in jellies such as yanggaeng, confectionery such as jam, and ice cream.

It is also used as a medium material for petri dishes used for bacterial culture in pharmaceutical, dried food, and food companies because it is not easily decomposed by bacteria and has strong coagulation power.

Colorless and odorless purity: Another meaning of agar

In this way, agar is a colorless, odorless, pure substance that is harmless to the human body.
In the classics of the East, there is a saying, “Heosim (虛心)”, which means “a person with an empty heart”, which means accepting people without prejudice.
It can also be said that how new employees or new students who are placed in a new environment like a blank sheet of paper are accepted and grow according to the organizational culture is also a gradual differentiation process.

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