Agar
![Culinary usage:
Mizu yōkan - a popular Japanese red bean jelly made from agarScientific usage:
A blood agar plate used to culture bacteria and diagnose infection.](/Images/godic/202412/20/Youkan_mizuyoukan5218.jpg")
![blood agar plate](/Images/godic/202412/20/Agarplate_redbloodcells_edit5218.jpg")
![Physcomitrella patens plants growing axenically in vitro on agar plates (Petri dish, 9 cm diameter).](/Images/godic/202412/20/Physcomitrella_growing_on_agar_plates5218.jpg")
![Sago at gulaman in Filipino cuisine is made from agar (gulaman), pearl sago, and fruit juice flavored with pandan](/Images/godic/202412/20/Sago_Gulaman5218.jpg")
Agar (pronounced /ˈeɪɡɑː/, US /ˈɑːɡər/, "AH-gər") or agar-agar (/ˈeɪɡɑːˈeɪɡɑː/, /ˈɑːɡərˈɑːɡər/, "AH-gər-AH-gər") is a jelly-like substance, obtained from algae. It was discovered in the late 1650s or early 1660s by Mino Tarōzaemon (美濃 太郎左衛門) in Japan, where it is called kanten (寒天).