The Struggle:
Gelatin has been the long reigning king of chewy candies. But recently we have had an influx of people wondering how to make gummy candies out of other ingredients. More often than not people attempt to use pectin as a replacement for the gelatin. This often leads to soft jelly like desserts called pate de fruit. This is because pectin is not and will never be gelatin. Gelatin and pectin have completely different properties. But this begs the question can you ever have a chewy pectin based candy that rivals the ones made from gelatin? How are they different and is there a way to make a vegan gummy that is just like the gelatin based ones?
“How do you make chewy pectin candy?”
Chewy not Gummy
Pectin as we stated above will never be gelatin so there is no way to simply replace gelatin with pectin and expect the same result. This is a common misconception as we often think that since they are both gelling agents that they will create the same type of gel.
Now if you are looking for an exact gelatin alternative that will mimic the texture of gelatin, we suggest our vegan gelatin. This is a one to one replacement for powdered gelatin. If you have an existing recipe for gummies and you want to turn them vegan you can simply replace the gelatin with the vegan gelatin. The only difference is that you do not need the blooming step, simply add the vegan gelatin into the sugar in the recipe and go about it as normal. Just be sure that the mixture is not below 4ph or it will not set. But let’s cover how we can make pectin into chewy candies since it’s actually a very cool process. As we all know pectin and gelatin are not created equal.
Pectin is a carbohydrate based gelling agent made from the cell walls of plants. Gelatin is a protein based gelling agent made from the bones and cartilage of animals. One would hope those two sentences would allow you to see the difference between the two. With that being said there is no conversion ratio between the two ingredients, nor do they share the same method of application. The basic method for making a gelatin gummy candy is to bloom the gelatin, mix all the ingredients, bring the mixture to a boil, pour into molds and allow it to set.
This would not work with pectin. First we should understand the type of pectin to use for this specifically. For a traditional candy that contains sugar there is only once choice. HM pectin is an ingredient that works with high sugar ratios. But it’s not only sugar that creates the gel within pectin. Unlike gelatin, which only requires that it be melted and cooled to set. Pectin requires at least 60-80% sugar content as well as an acid. Pectin needs to be below 3.5ph to set into a gel. Even at high concentrations of pectin it will never be chewy, pectin is a soft and brittle gel, this is why it makes spreadable jams and jellies so well. When making a chewy pectin candy it requires a little more finesse than a gelatin gummy. The pectin and sugar will need to be mixed with water. That mixture will need to be heated between 220°F and 240°F. Any higher will make the candies stick to your teeth, and nobody wants that. The sugars being heated to these temperatures will give the candies a perfect chew. The pectin holds the shape and gives a tenderness to the otherwise soft ball sugar. If done correctly the mixture will not caramelize or burn the pectin. Once the sugar reaches the correct temperature it can be flavored.
Now the most important part, create a mixture of 2 tsp citric acid and 1 tsp water per pound of candy. When this mixture is added it will need to be poured into a mold lined with granulated sugar immediately as the acid begint the setting of the pectin. The sugar dusting just prevents the candy from sticking to the bottom of the mold. Once cooled they should be removed, cut into the desired shape, and dusted with sugar. Check out our caramel chews below and look out for our fruit chews in the coming weeks.
Ready to get Cooking?
Give our Bite-Sized Caramel Chews and Yummy Vegan Gummy recipes a try!
Yummy Vegan Gummy: Our yummy vegan gummies are every bit as delightful and fun as the original. If you’ve been making gummies with products like Agar and what you’re getting just isn’t right, try our yummy vegan gummy today and taste the difference for yourself.
26 Comments.
Is there a way to convert a pectin based gummy recipe from apple pectin to HM slow set pectin
The ratios would be the same since apple pectin is generally just a rapid set pectin.
whipping siphon and strawberries – How to make them like Pop-Rocks /
If I were to make pectin gummie candies as a sugar free option, which pectin and sweetener should I use to get the best result?
LM pectin or NH pectin would be needed for this. If you use LM pectin you will need calcium to create the gel. Also as for a sweetener I would suggest isomalt as it can be heated to the correct temperature which lends to texture.
Hi, any idea on how long can I keep the caramels and the vegan gummies? Can I still eat after 2 months if looking good ( I followed recipe to the T
I am interested in making the Fruity Pectin Jelly Candy recipe. Why is Isomalt used in the recipe. I like to understand why I use a particular ingredient.
Isomalt is used to prevent crystallization when heating to such a high temperature in this recipe.
Thank you for your response. I thought it might have something to do with the prevention of crystallization, but I wanted to double check.
Thank you for this article, this is exactly what I’ve been searching for for weeks now!
Glad we could help you, let us know how they come out!
Hi! Would you have a recipe using fresh fruit juice and no sugar added for gummy bears or chewy candies?
this is difficult to do with fruit juice and pectin because the acidity may be to high and early-activate the pectin. You could attempt to buffer the acidity by using sodium citrate. The citric acid that’s in the recipe will activate the pectin towards the end.
Is there a way to get lm slow set pectin (pamonas universal pectin) to work with a high sugar gummies recipe? ( Corn syrup/ and sugar)
Pomonas universal pectin is an LM pectin, which does need low sugar content. Our slow set HM pectin will work with high sugar quantities
https://modernistpantry.com/products/slow-set-high-methoxyl-hm-pectin.html?_ga=2.134557170.240249008.1634580097-974264818.1627477901
Is there a way to avoid sweating when pectin fruit ( made with fruit purée? candy?
Most commonly the gums would be dried for a day or so after. But also most commercial facilities coat the gums in some sort of edible way to prevent weeping. Most commonly carnuba wax.
How long does it generally take to get brix to the wright level once hm pectin is combined with sugar corn syrup mixture?
My pectin jelly candy did not set up properly. Runny like a thick liquid. Is there any way to save this?
this is common when there is not enough acid added to the mixture. I would check to make sure that you are adding enough acid to the recipe to promote gelling.
How to make Aplets using pectin
While we don’t have a recipe for this we can suggest looking up a Pate di fruit recipe for something similar.
What is the working temp or flowing temp and time when using the slow set pectin and corn syrup after acid is applied when making larger quantities of gummies?
This depends on the temperature in which the mixture is cooked to. The higher the temperature the quicker the set will be, even when using slow set pectin. We suggest maintaining a temperature over 180F until molded.
Wondering on how to make a gummy with gelatin and small amount of pectin. Where you bloom Gelatin first then a pectin/sugar mix added.
A recipe like this would need to be fully tested before we could offer guidance on it. Maybe we can attempt one in the future.