Merry, merry king of the bush is he-ee.
Laugh, Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra!
Gay your life must be!
This song comes to my head whenever I read labels with the terms Gum Arabic, Xanthan Gum, Guar Gum, etc. If you're anything like me, you have absolutely no idea what these ingredients really are, and maybe you think they are related to your chewing gum in someway.
For the record, the Kookaburra's Gum Tree is a variety of Eucalyptus, and doesn't seem to be related to the other Gums I just listed.
Forgive me for being a little bit autistic, but that's the way my mind works, so here is what I needed to learn to understand Gums:
What is "gum" exactly?
Gum, according to Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), is defined as:
A vegetable secretion of many trees or plants that hardens when it exudes,
but is soluble in water; as, gum arabic; gum tragacanth; the gum of the
cherry tree. Also, with less propriety, exudations that are not soluble in
water; as, gum copal and gum sandarac, which are really resins.
Which gums are from plant species related to soybeans? Are they all legumes? After searching the internet for some kind of plant family tree, I finally found a list of all leguminous plants. Soy is a legume, technically, and therefore in the same plant family as peanuts, peas, and beans.
According to Answers.com the following plants are categorized as leguminous:
-Peanut, peanut vine-Chickpea, chickpea plant, Egyptian pea-Guar, cluster bean-Soy, soya, soybean, soya bean, soybean plant, soja, soja bean-Wild Pea-Lentil, lentil plant-Horse Gram, horse grain, poor man's pulse -Locoweed, crazyweed, crazyweed-Bean, bean plant-Pea, pea plant-Sesbania-Vetch-Moth Bean-Adzuki Bean, adsuki bean-Snailflower, snail flower, snail bean, corkscrew flower-Mung, mung bean, green gram, golden gram -Cowpea, cowpea plant, Black-eyed Pea-Asparagus Bean, yard-long bean
This list is not complete. Carob and Acacia should also be on this list.
According to the above list, Guar Gum is derived from another lentil, but what about the others.
So far my research is proving to be quite extensive, so I'll have to devote a post to each of the Gums, but the simple answer is:
Xanthan Gum is a sugar based fermentation grown with either corn, wheat or soy. It's a chemical compound. XG will not always list the source of the product, and all three that I know of are common allergens. This is not necessarily the product of a legume, but can be soy-based, unless otherwise specified. If someone has a link to document the regulation of soy in the creation of XG, please let me know. I have one unverified source claiming that XG is no longer made with soy in the U.S., and I would like to put this particular claim to the test.
Gum Arabic is also known as gum acacia. It is a natural gum, made from the hardened sap of two species of acacia trees, which grow wild in Arabia and Africa. The acacia tree is part of the Fabaceae or Leguminosae Family, and is therefore considered to be a legume.
Locust Bean Gum, also known as carob gum, carob bean gum, and carobin, is a common ice cream additive. The Carob tree, and its seed pods are a relative of the pea, and as a member of the Fabaceae family, it is also a legume.
Gum Tragacanth is also a natural gum made from dried sap. In this case, from several species of Middle Eastern legumes, known collectively as "goat's thorn" and "locoweed." Locoweed, we see on the list above. The gum can also be called "shiraz gum," "gum elect" or "gum dragon." Key word here: legume.
Chewing Gum is made from either natural latex or synthetic rubber. Not from legumes, but watch out for those flavorings...those could be soy-based.
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