Rheo-chemistry of gelation in aiyu (fig) jelly

We investigated the gelation characteristics of aiyu jelly derived from the polymeric extract obtained by washing the seeds of Ficus Pumila var. Awkeotsang. The main gel component is low methoxyl pectin, which forms crosslinks with divalent ions that bind the exuded polysaccharide chains. Unlike many fruit pectins used in jam and jellies that require heating, additional sugars, and acidic conditions to gel, the aiyu exudate gels at room temperature with just the addition of water. In this study, the time-resolved dynamics of the gelation process and the evolution of the viscoelastic relaxation spectrum with frequency and gel age are obtained via Optimally Windowed Chirp rheometry (OWCh), conventional time-sweep rheometry, and cryo-scanning electron microscope (cryo-SEM) microstructural characterization.