HK1158031B - Low sodium salt substitute compositions - Google Patents

Description

Low sodium salt replacement compositions

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/210,276 filed on 3/17/2009, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, in accordance with 35u.s.c. sctn.l. 19 (e).

Background

1. Field of the invention

The present disclosure relates to low sodium salt replacement compositions, and food products comprising the low sodium salt replacement compositions.

2. Description of the related Art

In recent years, the impact of excessive dietary sodium intake has attracted increasing attention. Excessive sodium intake is thought to lead to certain health-threatening problems, such as various cardiac and renal disease states. Furthermore, with a corresponding increase in body weight, the accumulation of sodium ions in the body tends to cause fluid accumulation in body tissues.

Dietary sodium is derived primarily from sodium chloride, i.e., salt, which enters the diet through a variety of routes including: (i) foods naturally containing sodium chloride; (ii) processed food added with sodium chloride and other sodium salts; and (iii) foods to which sodium chloride is added by the individual during cooking or prior to consumption. The latter two routes are the major problem causing excessive intake of sodium ions in the diet.

Methods for removing sodium chloride from diets, including removing sodium chloride from processed foods, are of great interest. However, the removal of sodium chloride from human diets presents certain challenges. In particular, the "salty" taste associated with sodium chloride is a particularly important flavor characteristic of many food products, and foods without salty taste are often referred to as "light" or "tasteless".

Many attempts have been made to provide salty compositions as alternatives to salt. For this purpose, potassium chloride, ammonium chloride and the like are suggested. However, the use of these chlorides, alone or in combination, fails to provide the desired taste or flavor effect of sodium chloride. Potassium chloride has a strong aftertaste, which most people generally perceive as bitter. Ammonium chloride also has a bitter taste after consumption and can produce undesirable side effects when ingested. Moreover, ammonium chloride decomposes at cooking and baking temperatures, thereby changing the pH of the surrounding material, which affects the taste and other attributes of any cooked food product containing ammonium chloride.

Thus, despite the advances made in this field, there remains a need in the art for low sodium salt replacement compositions that effectively mimic the salt flavor. The present invention fulfills this need and provides other related advantages.

Summary of The Invention

Briefly, the present disclosure relates to low sodium salt replacement compositions, and food products comprising the same.

In one embodiment, a low sodium salt replacement composition is disclosed comprising: (i) from about 3% to about 25% by weight sodium bisulfate; (ii) from about 2% to about 8% by weight of one or more umami (umami) ingredients; (iii) about 0% to about 50% by weight of potassium chloride; and (iv) about 0 wt% to about 95 wt% of a filler.

In another embodiment, a food product (e.g., a low sodium soy sauce food product) comprising the low sodium salt replacement composition is disclosed.

In another embodiment, a low sodium soy sauce food product is disclosed, comprising: (i) from about 1.5% to about 2.5% by weight sodium bisulfate; (ii) 50/50 mixtures of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate in an amount from about 0.3 to about 0.9 weight percent; (iii) about 7% to about 8% by weight hydrolyzed soy protein; (iv) from about 0.01% to about 0.05% by weight of one or more flavor masking or enhancing agents; (v) about 3% to about 4% by weight of potassium chloride; and (vi) about 6.5% to about 7.5% by weight maltodextrin.

These and other aspects of the disclosure will be apparent upon reference to the following detailed description.

Detailed Description

Certain specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the disclosure. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the disclosure may be practiced without one or more of the specific details. In other instances, well-known aspects of food products and food production methods have not been described in detail in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiments of the disclosure.

Throughout the specification and the appended claims, the word "comprise" and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising" are to be construed as open-ended inclusion, i.e., "including but not limited to," unless the context requires otherwise.

Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner with one or more embodiments.

As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. It should also be noted that the term "or" is generally employed in its alternative sense, rather than as a conjunction with "and" unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

The values recited as "ranges" in the present specification are intended to include both end values. When a value is described as being "between" two end values, the two end values are not included in this case.

As noted above, the present disclosure relates to low sodium salt replacement compositions, and food products comprising the low sodium salt replacement compositions.

In one embodiment, a low sodium salt replacement composition is disclosed comprising: (i) from about 3% to about 25% by weight sodium bisulfate; (ii) about 2% to about 8% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; (iii) about 0% to about 50% by weight of potassium chloride; and (iv) about 0 wt% to about 95 wt% of a filler.

In more specific embodiments, the composition may comprise from about 3% to about 20% by weight sodium bisulfate; from about 12% to about 20% by weight sodium bisulfate; from about 12% to about 18% by weight sodium bisulfate; or from about 12% to about 16% by weight sodium bisulfate.

In other more specific embodiments, the composition may comprise from about 2% to about 6% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; or from about 3% to about 5% by weight of one or more umami ingredients.

"umami" is commonly referred to as the fifth taste sensation and is used to describe a spicy, tasty, strong or meaty flavor. This mouthfeel can be imparted by glutamic acid, which is an amino acid; and by ribonucleotides, including inosinic acid and guanylic acid, that are naturally found in many foods, including meat, fish, vegetables, and dairy products. As used herein, "umami ingredient" includes, but is not limited to, umami taste imparting ingredients such as monosodium glutamate, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, yeast extracts (e.g., DSM maxarome. rtm. pure), hydrolyzed plant proteins (e.g., senxin (sensel Flavors) CVP LS hydrolyzed soy protein), flavor masks or enhancers (e.g., englere (Ungerer) natural bitter taste mask FS 12059, and englere natural salty taste enhancer FS 12061).

Thus, in other more specific embodiments, the one or more umami ingredients are selected from monosodium glutamate, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, yeast extract, hydrolyzed plant protein, and flavor masking or enhancing agents.

In other more specific embodiments, the composition may comprise from about 20% to about 30% by weight potassium chloride.

In other more specific embodiments, the composition may comprise from about 45% to about 95% by weight of a filler; about 75% to about 95% by weight of a filler; about 30% to about 80% by weight of a filler; about 30 wt% to about 66 wt% of a filler; or about 0 wt% filler.

As used herein, "bulking agent" refers to a bland or flavorless ingredient, such as dextrin or maltodextrin, used to dilute or expand a composition. Thus, in other more specific embodiments, the bulking agent is dextrin or maltodextrin.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the presence of a filler in the low sodium salt replacement composition of the present disclosure is optional. Generally, if the low sodium salt replacement composition is intended to be used as, for example, a table salt replacement, the composition may be diluted or expanded with a filler. However, if the low sodium salt replacement composition is added to a food product during manufacture, no bulking agent is required.

In another embodiment, a food product comprising any of the foregoing low sodium salt replacement compositions is disclosed. In a more specific embodiment, the food product may be a low sodium soy sauce food product.

In another embodiment, a low sodium soy sauce food product is disclosed, comprising: (i) from about 1.5% to about 2.5% by weight sodium bisulfate; (ii) 50/50 mixtures of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate in an amount from about 0.3 to about 0.9 weight percent; (iii) about 7% to about 8% by weight hydrolyzed soy protein; (iv) from about 0.01% to about 0.05% by weight of one or more flavor masking or enhancing agents; (v) about 3% to about 4% by weight of potassium chloride; and (vi) about 6.5% to about 7.5% by weight maltodextrin.

In a more specific embodiment, a low sodium soy sauce foodstuff comprises: (i) about 2.01% by weight sodium bisulfate; (ii) 50/50 mixture of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate at about 0.57 wt%; (iii) about 7.58 wt.% hydrolyzed soy protein; (iv) about 0.01% by weight of a bitterness masking agent; (v) about 0.03 wt% of a salty taste enhancer; (vi) about 3% by weight potassium chloride; and (vii) about 6.9% by weight maltodextrin.

In other more specific embodiments, the low sodium soy sauce food product further comprises about 4% to about 5% by weight sodium chloride.

It is to be understood that any embodiment of the composition listed above may be independently combined with other embodiments of the composition to form embodiments not specifically listed above. In addition, where ranges of amounts of any particular ingredient are indicated in particular embodiments, it is to be understood that all amounts falling within the ranges are to be considered within the scope of the disclosure. For example, the following various embodiments are within the scope of the present disclosure:

1. a low sodium salt replacement composition comprising a minimum of about 3% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 2% by weight of one or more umami components; no potassium chloride; and up to about 95 wt% filler.

2. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising up to about 20% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 5% by weight of one or more umami components; no potassium chloride; and a minimum of about 75% by weight of a filler.

3. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising a minimum of about 3% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 2% by weight of one or more umami components; up to about 50% by weight potassium chloride; and a minimum of about 45 wt% filler.

4. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising from about 12% to about 25% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 0% to about 8% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; about 0% to about 50% by weight of potassium chloride; and about 30 wt% to about 80 wt% of a filler.

5. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising from about 12% to about 18% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 2% to about 6% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; about 20% to about 30% by weight of potassium chloride; and about 30 wt% to about 66 wt% of a filler.

6. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising from about 14% to about 16% by weight sodium bisulfate; from about 3% to about 5% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; about 20% to about 30% by weight of potassium chloride; and about 30 wt% to about 67 wt% of a filler.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the low sodium salt replacement compositions disclosed herein can be used in a wide variety of food products including, but not limited to: various types of noodles, such as macaroni and spaghetti; bread; snack foods, such as potato chips; processed tomato-based food products, such as tomato juice and tomato puree; soup; various types of sauces and seasonings, such as soy sauce and barbecue sauce; pickling vegetables; various canned fish and dried fish; a salted food; various types of cheese; meat products such as bacon, ham and sausage; and dairy products such as butter and margarine. Further, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the amount of the low sodium salt substituting composition to be added may be selected according to the purpose of use, and is not particularly limited in this regard.

The following examples are provided for illustration and not limitation. The compositions disclosed herein can be readily prepared by those skilled in the art using known techniques, within limited experimentation. For example, for use as a table salt substitute, the low sodium salt substitute composition should be dissolved in water and spray dried to turn the mixture into uniform crystals.

Examples

Example 1:

the following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt replacement composition 1

TABLE-US-00001

Maltodextrin (10DE) 60.00%

Yeast extract (DSM Maxamer. RTM. pure) 2.00%

20.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 14.00 percent

Example 2

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt substitute composition 2

TABLE-US-00002

Maltodextrin (10DE) 57.00%

Yeast extract (DSM Maxamer. RTM. pure) 2.00%

25.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 12.00 percent

Example 3

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt substitute composition 3

TABLE-US-00003

Maltodextrin (10DE) 55.80%

Yeast extract (DSM Maxame. RTM. pure) 3.20%

25.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 12.00 percent

Example 4

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt substitute composition 4

TABLE-US-00004

Maltodextrin (10DE) 55.00%

Yeast extract (DSM Maxamer. RTM. pure) 2.00%

25.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 14.00 percent

Example 5

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt substitute composition 5

TABLE-US-00005

Maltodextrin (10DE) 55.00%

25.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 16.00 percent

Example 6

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt substitute composition 6

TABLE-US-00006

Maltodextrin (10DE) 55.00%

25.00 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 4.00%

Sodium bisulfate 16.00 percent

Example 7

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt alternative composition 7(V-10a)

TABLE-US-00007

Maltodextrin (10DE) 41.24967%

18.75 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 3.00%

Sodium bisulfate 12.00 percent

Salt (sodium chloride) 25.00%

Englele natural bitterness masking agent (FS 12059) 0.00025%

Englele natural salty taste enhancer (FS 12061) 0.00008%

Example 8

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt alternative composition 8(V-10)

TABLE-US-00008

Maltodextrin (10DE) 41.25%

18.75 percent of potassium chloride

Disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50) 3.00%

Sodium bisulfate 12.00 percent

Salt (sodium chloride) 25.00%

Example 9

The following are representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

Low sodium salt alternative composition 9(V-5)

TABLE-US-00009

Maltodextrin (10DE) 60.00%

Yeast extract (DSM Maxamer. RTM. pure) 2.00%

20.00 percent of potassium chloride

14.00 percent of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50)

Example 10

The following is a representative low sodium chicken soup foodstuff comprising a representative low sodium salt replacement composition of the present disclosure (all% by weight).

TABLE-US-00010

Chicken broth (chicken broth) 36.20%

36.20 percent of water

Chicken meat 13.39% of cooked and diced meat

Pasta (pasta), cooked 13.39%

Onion powder 0.16%

White pepper, ground 0.01%

Salt (sodium chloride) 0.16%

0.30 percent of potassium chloride

0.05 percent of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate (50/50)

Sodium bisulfate 0.10%

Englele natural bitterness masking agent (FS 12059) 0.03%

Englele natural salty taste enhancer (FS 12061) 0.01%

Example 11

The following are representative low sodium soy sauce foods comprising representative low sodium salt replacement compositions of the present disclosure (all% are wt%).

TABLE-US-00011

Syrup (Grandma's Unsulured) 1.57%

Tamarind seed concentrate (Seeni, USA) 0.76%

Hop extract (Kalsec CPF 045154) 0.05%

68.14 percent of water

Malt extract (Malt Products #102) 5.06%

Hydrolyzed soy protein (Senxin CVP LS) 7.58%

Maltodextrin (10DE) 6.90%

3.14 percent of potassium chloride

0.57 percent of inosinic acid disodium and guanylic acid disodium (50/50)

Sodium bisulfate 2.01 percent

Salt (sodium chloride) 4.18%

Englele natural bitterness masking agent (FS 12059) 0.03%

Englele natural salty taste enhancer (FS 12061) 0.01%

Conventional soy sauce foods have high levels of sodium chloride, which has a preservative effect on the composition due to low water activity. The pH of the low sodium soy sauce food product is about 3.46, which has a preservative effect on the composition (in other words, the food product becomes shelf stable) when pasteurized at 180 degrees fahrenheit/82 degrees celsius for 2 minutes. The low-sodium soy sauce food described above has about 70% less sodium than commercially available Guijiawan (Kikkoman) soy sauce.

All of the above U.S. patents, U.S. patent application publications, U.S. patent applications, foreign patents, foreign patent applications and non-patent publications referred to in this specification and/or listed in the application data sheet, are incorporated herein by reference, in their entirety.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that, although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims (15)

1. A low sodium salt replacement composition comprising: from about 3% to about 25% by weight sodium bisulfate; about 2% to about 8% by weight of one or more umami ingredients; about 20% to about 30% by weight of potassium chloride; and about 0 wt% to about 95 wt% of a filler,

wherein the one or more umami ingredients are selected from monosodium glutamate, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, yeast extract and hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and

wherein the sum of the using amount of each component is 100 percent.

2. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 3% to about 20% by weight sodium bisulfate.

3. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 12% to about 20% by weight sodium bisulfate.

4. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 12% to about 18% by weight sodium bisulfate.

5. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 12% to about 16% by weight sodium bisulfate.

6. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 2% to about 6% by weight of one or more umami ingredients.

7. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 3% to about 5% by weight of one or more umami ingredients.

8. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 45% to about 95% by weight of filler.

9. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 75% to about 95% by weight of filler.

10. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 30% to about 80% by weight of filler.

11. The composition of claim 1, comprising from about 30% to about 66% by weight of filler.

12. The composition of claim 1, comprising about 0 wt% filler.

13. The composition of claim 1, wherein the filler is dextrin or maltodextrin.

14. A food product comprising the low sodium salt replacement composition of claim 1.

15. The food product of claim 14, wherein the food product is a low sodium soy food product.