Stabilizers: Sodium Alginate

Extracted from sea algae, it is considered a highly effective stabilizer because of the texture and body it adds to ice creams and sherbets, and because it can bind calcium better than other stabilizers. It is not recommended for sorbets for this reason. As much as it is a good stabilizer, it is also very expensive, but when you consider that only .18 to .25 percent of it is used in a formula’s total weight, it doesn’t affect small-batch production considerably.