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Why I Bake With Guar Gum

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I get a lot of comments, emails, and messages from people asking me why I use guar gum in my gluten-free recipes, and if they can use xanthan gum instead, so I wanted to take a moment and address that really quickly.

The short answer is yes. You can do an even swap and will most likely never see any difference.

So why do all my ingredient lists specify guar gum?

Firstly, because that’s what I used, and secondly because guar gum is sooo much cheaper. Although xanthan gum has come down in price over time, it’s still much, much more expensive than guar gum. (Here’s the cheapest place I’ve found to get either).

One of the biggest problems with adhering to a gluten-free diet is the price tag. Yikes! Gf products are expensive. Using guar gum, along with adding it on a per recipe basis rather than putting it directly into your gluten-free flour mix,  is just one of many ways to make a gluten-free diet more budget-friendly.

That said, there are other pros and cons to both gums.

Image shows a bottle of Xantham Gum

Xanthan gum

Pros:

  • Widely available

Cons:

  • Made from corn products
  • Possibly GMO based
  • Expensive

Image shows a bottle of Guar Gum

Guar gum

Pros:

  • Cheaper
  • Not made from GMO products

Cons:

  • More limited availability
  • Derived from beans (which some folks have found problematic)

We haven’t had any problem with the bean aspect of guar gum, and we have had some issues after using xanthan gum that has made us think that Gabriel may be allergic to it.

Factor in the price difference and… You get recipes full of guar gum. If you prefer xanthan gum though, feel free to make the swap. It’s all good here.

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