A clear jelly-like substance extracted from certain red seaweeds, used in laboratories to grow bacteria and in cooking as a vegetarian gelatin substitute.
From Malay 'agar-agar' (jelly), borrowed through Portuguese and Dutch traders. The word refers to the gelatin extracted from seaweed used in Southeast Asia for centuries.
Agar revolutionized microbiology—petri dishes filled with agar let scientists like Koch and Pasteur see and grow pure bacterial cultures, making modern medicine possible! And it's completely plant-based, so vegetarians have had a gelatin option for way longer than most people realize.
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