PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gelling agent which is favorably dispersed or dissolved in a liquid food at 50-60°C which is relatively low temperature as a temperature for dissolving the gelling agent to gelatinize the liquid food, keeps a good shape retention without dissolving the gelled food even when reheated, is highly versatile so that addition of the gelling agent makes the gelled food become suitable for being taken by persons having difficulty in mastication and/or swallowing even when being added to fruit juice, milk, or liquid food richly containing minerals and/or fat content such as miso soup (soup), a concentrated fluid food or milk, and disperses without forming lumps even under a mild agitating condition such as hand agitation so as to be excellent in handling property.SOLUTION: The gelling agent includes easily dissolvable agar and guar gum having a weight-average molecular weight of 1.5×106 g/mol or more, includes the guar gum at 60-700 mass% based on the amount of easily dissolvable agar, and further includes xanthan gum and/or native-type gellan gum.COPYRIGHT: (C)2012,JPO&INPIT【課題】50~60℃といったゲル化剤の溶解温度としては比較的低温の液状食品に良好に分散、溶解して液状食品をゲル化させることができ、再加温を行った場合であってもゲル状食品が溶解することなく良好な保形性を保つことのできるゲル化剤を提供する。更には、果汁飲料、牛乳、味噌汁(スープ)や濃厚流動食や牛乳といった、ミネラルや脂肪含有の高い液状食品に添加した場合であっても、咀嚼・嚥下困難者の喫食に適したゲル状食品となる、汎用性の高いゲル化剤を提供する。また、手撹拌のような緩い撹拌条件でもダマになることなく分散し、取り扱いに優れたゲル化剤を提供する。【解決手段】易溶性寒天及び重量平均分子量が1.5×106g/mol以上のグァーガムを含有し、易溶性寒天に対して前記グァーガムを60~700質量%含有する。更にキサンタンガム及び/又はネイティブ型ジェランガムを含有する。【選択図】なし
