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5 Alternatives to Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum in Gluten-Free Baking

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If you’re looking for an alternative to xanthan gum or guar gum that will still give your gluten free baked goods an amazing texture, we’ve got five great options! 

alternatives to xanthan gum and guar gum on a parchment paper.

Those who have tried and failed know all too well the challenge gluten-free baking presents. Even the most seasoned gluten free baker sometimes experiences cupcakes having the hardness and dryness of a biscuit and breads that are flat and dry. Baking without gluten affects the texture, taste and structure of baked goods, which is why a binding ingredient is so important in a recipe.

Gluten Free Binding Ingredients: A Little Background

Just as the name implies, a binding agent helps ingredients stick together. Gluten is a protein, but it’s also a binder. It is the very thing that traps air bubbles inside of a batter to create the perfect balance of air, wet and dry ingredients. (That’s that fluffy dinner bread or light yeast bread!)

When you remove gluten from a baked good, it can turn into a runny mess if you don’t replace it with something else. The lack of a binding agent not only affects the appearance of your baked goods, but it can affect the taste too.

Alternatives to Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum

Popular alternatives to gluten as a binding agent exist in the form of Xanthan gum and Guar gum. While they’re widely used, like gluten, some people experience problems with these too. The good news is that many alternatives DO exist and most of them work just as well, giving your gluten-free baking the light, airy and melt in your mouth texture you crave.

Psyllium Fiber (Psyllium Husk Powder)

psyllium husk for alternatives to xanthan gum and guar gum in gluten free baking

Psyllium fiber is found in most health stores as a dietary fiber supplement. It’s popular among bodybuilders and athletes as it helps maintain their digestive health while actively helping to reduce cholesterol. So that’s why it may come as a bit of a surprise that psyllium husk powder has been shown to be a great binding agent which improves the baking quality of bread.

A little background on psyllium husk powder

A study conducted in Kuwait proved it. Long story short… scientists started the research with a totally unrelated agenda – they wanted to increase the fiber content in bread. In their experiments, one of the ingredients they added in their blend of flour was 5% psyllium husk powder. The results were completely unexpected and even encouraging from a baking perspective. Not only did the bread rise a little higher, it also retained more moisture and had more volume overall.

That’s not all.

An additional study was performed at the University of Milan and Michigan State University. This particular study sought to improve the structure of gluten-free dough. And guess what? “Psyllium fibre [psyllium husk powder] generally enhanced the physical properties of the doughs.” 

If you haven’t tried psyllium husk powder as an alternative to xanthan gum or guar gum, here are two recipes that use psyllium husk powder:

Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Gum Free Dinner Rolls

Gluten Free ‘Boston’ Style Brown Bread

You can buy Psyllium husk powder for about $15 at Amazon.com.

Chia Seeds

chia seeds on a wooden cutting board alternative to xanthan gum and guar gum.

Chia seeds are used for everything from sprinkling into flour mixes to add a nutritional boost to substituting for an egg. From a nutritional perspective, chia seeds are as close to a ‘superfood’ as you can get. They are rich in Omega 3 fatty acids (more than 2.5 times that of flaxseed), protein and fiber, just to mention a few. On top of all that, they can be used as a binding agent too.

Besides being very high in soluble fiber, they are also hydrophilic (water absorbing). Chia seeds can absorb up to 12 times their own weight in water, forming a gel like substance which locks in moisture.

In baking, this improves the overall structure of breads, pastries and cakes as it eliminates dry or crumbly results due to lack of moisture.

While they are very small and, unlike other seeds, have no real ‘shell’, their ‘seedy’ appearance may not be most desirable thing to use in some recipes. Chia seeds can also be ground and added to flour blends although grounding is not required for their ‘binding’ to take effect. (The picture above shows chia seeds and then ground chia seeds.)

It is also worth noting that they have a very mild, nutty flavor which generally does not alter the overall taste of the food items they are added to.

Chia seeds will run about $14.00 for a 16 oz. package.

More Chia Seed info here: How to Make Substitutions for Xanthan Gum in Baking

Ground Flax Seeds (Flax Seed Meal)

flax seeds on a wooden boardalternatives to xanthan gum and guar gum in baking.

Flax seeds are far more common than their chia counterparts. While we tend to associate them with baking, flax seeds are healthy too.

In gluten-free baking, ground flax seeds do a great job of binding ingredients together and mimicking that desirable ‘gluten effect’ by adding moisture and softness to your baking.

But be warned: Flax seeds tend to be rather large in comparison to chia seeds and they also have an outer shell. As a result, just adding them in their natural form to a gluten-free flour blend won’t work as a binder.

They actually have to be ground for the binding effect to take place. Ground flax seeds are also known as flax seed meal.

Nutritionally, ground flax is rich in Omega 3 fatty acids (though not as high as chia seeds), iron, fiber and zinc – just to name a few.

Flax seed meal is one of our favorite alternatives to xanthan or guar gum. Here are a couple recipes using ground flax seeds:

Quick Gluten Free Double Chocolate Biscuits

Gluten Free Italian Herb Bread for the Bread Machine

Flax seed meal will last a long time – here is a good one to use: Flax Seed Meal

You might also like: Gluten Free Outback Steakhouse Bread (Gum Free) 

Gelatin

gelatin in a measuring cup alternatives to xanthan gum and guar gum

Gelatin frequently appears on the ingredients list of some popular sweet snacks such as gums and jelly beans. It’s the gelatin which gives them their sticky, moist-on-the-inside texture. When mixed with water, it forms a gel-like substance which can be used in baking to make doughs stretchy and to retain moisture in baked food.

Gelatin is frequently used as an egg replacer and for this reason, it functions well as a binder.

A drawback is that gelatin is derived from animals and is therefore not suitable for vegetarians or vegans. Also keep in mind that not all gelatin is created equal – the popular flavored JELLO is not the type of gelatin for baking. Aspen Naturals is a good variety. But avoid any flavored gelatin. It is not the same thing!

Gelatin is on the high end in terms of cost, so be prepared to make a lot of eggs with it!

Agar Agar

 

agar agar altneratives to xanthan gum and guar gum in baking.

Agar agar is a vegan alternative to gelatin (and less expensive!). It is derived from seaweed and is a common food additive in food processing plants. Much like gelatin, agar agar can be found in a flavorless variety and it acts as a thickener, stabilizer, texturizer, forming a gel-like substance when mixed with water.

In gluten-free baking, this would result in a stretchier dough, chewier breads and (more) moist cakes. That said, it’s a good idea to exercise caution when using agar agar as using too much can result in excess moisture being retained, making your bread or cakes soggy.

Agar agar is available here and since a little goes a long way, you’ll have it for a while.

Which Alternative to Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum is Right for You?

Xanthan and guar gum may be the heavy hitters when it comes to binding agents for gluten free bakers, but they aren’t the only game in town! What’s more, these other baking solutions promise to deliver results which are just as tasty as using xanthan gum or guar gum in your breads, rolls, muffins, cakes and pretty much anything else you’d like to substitute it for.

Our recommendation? Flax seed meal, chia seed or psyllium husk powder – they’re our go-to alternatives for xanthan gum or guar gum!

Ready for some mouthwatering recipes? These are great ones to start with:

Gluten Free English Muffins

Gluten Free Dairy Free Dinner Rolls

Gluten Free White Bread Without Xanthan Gum

Soft Gluten Free Breadsticks

Flaky Gluten Free Biscuits

This article was originally published 10/26/2013, then updated 3/23/2018 and updated again with new pictures 8/28/2019.

Reader Interactions

Comments

    • Chrissy Lane

      Hi Maddalena,

      In most recipes, you would use the same proportion of flax seed as xanthan gum. It’s a one-for-one substitution. So 1 tsp. of xanthan gum would mean 1 tsp. of flax seeds (and this would mean the golden flax seeds).

      Thanks for asking!

      Reply

        • Christine

          Hi Claudette,

          Sure so for 3/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum, if the recipe is calling for 1 cup of flour, then use 2 teaspoons of psyllium husk powder. I usually stick to 2-3 teaspoons in a recipe.

          Hope that helps!

          Christine

          Reply

  2. Zsa Zsa

    Thanks just what I was looking for. So how would the other ingredients be substituted? I am specifically looking to use psyllium, chia or gelatin.

    Reply

  3. Mike

    I didn’t know there were so many alternatives. When we stared our GF life we were only looking for GF products. For the last couple of months now we try to eliminate starches and xanthan gum.

    Great read thanks

    Reply

  4. Kendall

    Thanks for posting this, I’ve recently had to start gluten free for my son and I and haven’t wanted to use xantham gum or any corn product or corn by-product and this has help me greatly in helping find alternatives in my baking. And usually have flax seed and chia seed on hand for my family and our animals. Time to get plenty more and whip out recipes or find new ones that we love.

    Reply

  5. Judy

    Just a question: if substituting gelatin or anything else listed here for xanthan gum, is it measure for measure? Thanks.

    Reply

  6. saloni

    hi,
    these were very useful, thanks.
    just one clarification, to use chia or flax we need to ground it then use right? so quantity to be taken is grounded mixture?

    Reply

  7. NannyB

    Hi…VERY interesting article. I grow vanilla beans and want to make some Vanilla Paste with some of my cured beans. Most recipes want you to add xanthan gum as a thickener. I believe what I need is a consistency almost like honey…maybe a tad thicker but not firm like a jello for sure. I am not liking what I read about the xanthan gum and I am curious to know which of the above listed suggestions would give me this consistency even after being cooled and decanted into small glass jars. I could not have “seeds” or small ground particles in the Vanilla Paste either. It needs to have a clarity to it! Can you help me to determine which is best to maintain the integrity of the paste? Thanks, and thanks again for this great article!

    Reply

    • C.J. Brady

      Hi Nanny B,

      Thank you so much for the kind words!

      So yeah I have a friend who makes vanilla paste… I asked her about it, since I’ve never ventured to make it! She said she uses agave nectar and the vanilla bean. That’s it.

      She said it turns out wonderful every time.

      And she does strain it well, to remove the small particles, like you mentioned.

      Hope that helps!

      Reply

  8. ellie new

    Will using only chia seed work? I’m on a very restricted diet and can only use chia seed and not flax or any other above mentioned grains.

    Reply

  9. Sue

    Just like to say thank you for your info as many times I have tried to find simple
    solutions to no avail.

    As I have been instructed to maintain a gluten free, dairy and soy free diet it hasn’t been easy but now that I have read your spill on binders it has made life easier.
    Thank you

    Reply

  10. Carolyn Fung

    Thanks for all the great ideas for other things to use. Why can’t the manufactures of gluten free breads and cookies use them? I am more interested in baked cookies and cakes than bread ; which some brands don’t contain the gum. Would be nice if all of them did. Can you print more of the cookie and cake ones for us. Thanks so much again.

    Reply

  11. K O'Neil

    I’ve also used Konjac powder (also called glucommen) as a 1:1 substitute for xanthan gum, which I can’t digest. I bought it online.

    Reply

  12. pamela garcia

    Can’t wait to try these tonight with some homemade soup!!! Thanks for the recipe and the substitutions. I now have another use for my flax seed meal.

    Reply

  13. Martha

    Hi Christine, I’m trying to make a 5-ingredient cookie recipe right now, which contains : butter, sugar, flour, vanilla, & chopped pecans. I don’t have any of the items you mentioned right now, and the cookies are crumbling apart. The only thing I have here, that might hold the GF flour together, is eggs. Would you please tell me if eggs would work, & if so, how many eggs to use, per cup of flour?

    Reply

    • Christine

      Hi Martha,

      That’s a tough one – my best guess would be eggs and the number of eggs would differ from recipe to recipe. But typically a batch of cookies gets 2 eggs. Is this recipe gluten free as written?

      ~Christine

      Reply

  14. Maria Ambar

    Hi. I’m newbie in baking.
    So if I want to make cinnamon rolls and the ingredient stated 3,5 cups gluten free flour, so what is the ratio of gf flour (without xanthan gum) and say, I use chia and flax meal?

    Thanks!

    Reply

  15. Ron Blanshine

    One correction requested. I realize that the post is old, but the information about relative Omega-3 content between Chia and Flax seeds is wrong, way off. Contrary to your statement that Chia has more than 2.5 times the Omega-3 oils of Flax, Flax has about 30% more Omega-3 according to this web page: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/chia-vs-flax , and that is not the only reliable source I have seen this information.

    Reply

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