What is pectin?
By Chelsie Vandaveer
July 8, 2003
Pectin
is a polysaccharide, long chains of a sugar derivative, galacturonic acid.
It is present in the cell walls of plant tissues. It keeps cell walls intact
as well as holding the cells together somewhat like mortar holds bricks.
Unlike mortar, pectin remains elastic; the cells can move relative to each
other allowing the plant flexibility in the wind.
Plants
produce versions of pectin with molecular weights (combined weight of the
atoms in the molecule) from 20,000 to 400,000. (Merck Index, 11th Edition, 1989) Pectin content varies from species to species and from tissue to tissue within a plant.
Pectin
was not discovered until the 1820s. Housewives, responsible for preparing
food for winter, knew jellies could be made with certain fruits--sour and
crab apples, quinces, gooseberries, Concord grapes, and cranberries. Other
fruit like strawberries, blueberries, cherries, or peaches would not gel.
Housewives
got around this by adding fruit that would gel to fruit that would not gel.
Still, until glass jars were invented which could be sealed with wax (1850s)
and Louis Pasteur discovered why food spoiled (1861), jams, jellies, preserves,
and conserves were short-term solutions to a glut of ripe fruit. Foods for
the winter consisted of what could be dried, buried in barrels, or immersed
in salty water (pickled) or oil. ("A Primer on Fruit Jars", Dave Hinson, 1996, Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors)
Pectin
was first extracted from the waste of crushed apples (apple pomace) from
making juice or cider. Today most pectin is extracted from citrus rinds.
The long chains of pectin bind the liquids with the dissolved and suspended
solids forming a gel. Pectin allowed for a wider range of fruits to be made
into jellies, jams, and preserves. Pectin spurred the fruit-flavored candy
industry in Europe. Pectin binds water, thickening and stabilizing foods,
cosmetics, and medications for packaging and storage. ("Pectin", Martin Chaplin, 2003, South Bank University)
Pectin
in combination with kaolin (china clay, hydrated aluminum silica) is an OTC
treatment for diarrhea, a mere inconvenience today. It is a reaction by the
body attempting to rid itself of bacteria or toxins from contaminated foods
or water. But before the kaolin-pectin medication was available, bacterial
diarrhea often killed people especially children. The kaolin is thought to
surround the bacteria while the pectin slows the loss of water from the body.
("Kaolin and Pectin", Medline, U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health)
The
International Pectin Producers Association has a very informative website.
To learn more about pectin, its extraction and uses, click on the link:
http://www.ippa.info/
|
