Are you having difficulty dissolving Gelatine leaves?
I had this same problem and it took me a few trials to really work out what I was doing wrong. However, with a very simple
Titanium Gelatine Leaves
The initial dissolving process is the same for both Gold and Titanium Gelatine strength. Basically, take the number of leaves you need, making sure they are not sticking together, and soak them in a big bowl of cold water for 5 minutes. I always put all the Gelatine into the same bowl to soak, but if you are worried about them not absorbing enough water and leaving your dish lumpy you can soak each leaf separately.
When is Gelatine ready to use?
You will notice that the leaves go from a golden colour to an almost colourless straw look. If they feel gooey and like a firm gel they are ready to use.
After the 5 minutes scoop out the Gelatine and squeeze gently in your hands. This is to remove a good deal of the water, but don’t over squeeze, or the Gelatine will break and ooze its way through your fingers (from personal experience). When enough water has been removed from the jelly-like leaves add them with a spoon to your hot or tepid liquid.
With hot liquid, it takes about 20 seconds of stirring to dissolve completely, but to give your dish a finer finish, strain through a strainer to remove any Gelatine that has not dissolved.
With cool liquids, the dissolving may take a little longer, in this case, if possible, put the liquid on a gentle heat for about 30 seconds. This will give the liquid just enough heat to start the dissolving process. Again, especially with cool dissolving, strain the mix, as there is the possibility that there will be lumps of undissolved Gelatine.
You know for yourself that with any recipe trial and experimentation is the key. Each brand of Gelatine will give you a different result which is why I tend to stick to the one brand I know works. Right now, I am using a brand that we at Gourmet Goldmine are selling. This Gelatine, both Gold and Titanium strength gives me the same result each time.
Panna Cotta
I hope you found this helpful, as I know using Gelatine can sometimes be a hit-and-miss affair depending on the ingredient that you are using, but good luck and happy cooking.
