JP2006223244A - Fermentation promoter of lactic acid bacterium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To develop a fermentation promoter of a lactic acid bacterium, useful for efficiently producing sour milk, yoghurt, a cocoa-flavored fermented milk drink, etc., by using the lactic acid bacterium originated from a plant which is not conventionally used for producing a fermented milk product, and to provide a functional food together having functionality of polyphenols and functionality of a fermented product produced by the lactic acid bacterium. <P>SOLUTION: This fermentation promoter of the lactic acid bacterium contains a cocoa mass as a growth promotor. A method for producing fermented food and drink, such as the cocoa-flavored fermented milk drink, the sour milk, and the yoghurt, comprises using the fermentation promoter. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a fermentation promoter for lactic acid bacteria, and more particularly to a fermentation promoter for lactic acid bacteria characterized by containing cocoa mass. Furthermore, it is related with the method of manufacturing sour milk, yoghurt, fermented cocoa drink, etc. using this fermentation promoter. Furthermore, the present invention provides a method for shortening the fermentation time when producing a fermented dairy product by promoting the growth of lactic acid bacteria by cocoa mass, a fermented dairy product excellent in flavor, and a food, confectionery, etc. containing these. To do.

Since fermented foods and drinks using lactic acid bacteria are excellent in storage stability, lactic acid fermentation has been developed as a storage method for various foods. Lactic acid fermentation has been established as a food preservation method regardless of the Orient or the West. As fermented foods and drinks, for example, fermented dairy products made from milk of mammals such as yogurt and cheese, representative of various pickles and ryokyou Pickles made from plants such as vegetables, as well as miso and soy sauce are known.
In recent years, many researchers have isolated and identified lactic acid bacteria from these fermented foods and drinks. From these research results, lactic acid bacteria are recognized as a general term for microorganisms that produce lactic acid by fermentation.

  Lactic acid bacteria isolated from meat products such as mammalian milk and sausage are called animal lactic acid bacteria because their source is animal origin, such as Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus salvalius, Lactobacillus bulgaris. Are known. On the other hand, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis Lactobacillus curvantus, Lactobacillus sakei, Lactobacillus brevis, etc. are known as plant lactic acid bacteria such as bark, fruits, vegetables and pickles.

  Sausage called Nam made in Thailand is made by wrapping minced pork with seasoning in the leaves of plants that inhabit the rainforest and fermenting it for 1-2 days in sunlight. The inventors have already succeeded in separating Lactobacillus plantarum SN13T and Lactobacillus plantarum SN26T, which have particularly strong acid productivity, from the nam.

In general, animal lactic acid bacteria require mammalian milk for growth and exhibit vigorous growth in mammalian milk. However, even if it tries to ferment plant materials, such as vegetables, using this animal lactic acid bacteria, it may be unable to ferment. Conversely, when trying to ferment mammalian milk such as milk using plant-derived lactic acid bacteria represented by Lactobacillus plantarum, fermentation is often difficult.
Thus, lactic acid bacteria differ in the raw material of foods and drinks that can be fermented depending on their origin, and are clearly divided.

  In recent years, research on the functionality of fermented foods and drinks obtained using lactic acid bacteria or lactic acid bacteria has been widely conducted in Japan and overseas, and many functionalities have been elucidated. Examples thereof include gastric cancer suppression, colorectal cancer suppression, intestinal function, cholesterol level reducing action, immunostimulatory function, and the like. Many of these functions have been investigated with respect to animal lactic acid bacteria derived from fermented milk such as Lactobacillus gasseri, Lactobacillus jensenii, Lactobacillus casei, and studies on plant lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus plantarum have not progressed.

On the other hand, research on the functionality of polyphenol is also progressing, and various functions are recognized in plant-derived polyphenols (flavonoids, anthocyanins, catechins, etc.), but in the presence of the polyphenol, It is known that growth is suppressed.
Under such circumstances, the appearance of food and drink having both the functionality of polyphenols and the functionality of lactic acid bacteria has been desired.

In addition, quality assurance of fermented milk typified by yogurt is an important issue, and rapid initial fermentation is required to prevent the propagation of various bacteria. Therefore, there is a high need for a substance having a fermentation promoting action, particularly a fermentation promoting substance having an excellent flavor.
In addition, with the extensive functional research described above, there is a high need for producing fermented foods and beverages such as yogurt, which are produced by combining plant materials such as vegetables and animal materials such as milk. However, there are problems as described above, and it has been desired to develop a substance that promotes fermentation of both plant raw materials and animal raw materials by lactic acid bacteria.
So far, it has been proposed to use plant components such as pumpkins as substances that promote the growth of Bifidobacterium (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-250528 A

As probiotics, when using raw plant lactic acid bacteria to process raw milk into yogurt, sour milk, etc., as mentioned above, plant lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus plantarum can vigorously grow in mammalian milk. Since it is difficult, search for a method for promoting the growth of the plant lactic acid bacteria or a substance for promoting the growth is desired.
In addition, when raw milk coexists with vegetable raw materials such as vegetables, yogurt fermentation by lactic acid bacteria is difficult and there are cases where it is exposed to dangers such as contamination with various bacteria. Therefore, development of an effective fermentation accelerator is expected in order to realize fermentation efficiently in a short time. Moreover, development of the functional food / beverage products which have the functionality of polyphenols and the functionality of the fermentation product by lactic acid bacteria is desired.

The inventors selected Lactobacillus plantarum as a representative of plant lactic acid bacteria, and examined the substances that promote fermentation by the bacteria by adding various additives when culturing the bacteria in skim milk powder.
As a result, it was surprisingly found that Lactobacillus plantarum performs vigorous fermentation by adding 2% cocoa mass to skim milk powder. That is, it was found that the addition of cocoa mass promotes the fermentation of Lactobacillus plantarum, and achieves 4-fold production of lactic acid compared to when cocoa mass is not added. Moreover, since the fermentation product was solidified like yogurt under these conditions, it was found that yogurt having a cocoa flavor can be obtained using plant lactic acid bacteria, and further a fermented cocoa beverage can be produced.
Moreover, by adding cocoa mass to the raw material milk, fermentation can be performed quickly and the production time of the fermented food or drink can be substantially shortened.
In addition, when Lactobacillus plantarum SN13T isolated from the nam was used as a test bacterium, the amount of lactic acid produced when the same experiment as described above was performed was compared with the amount of lactic acid produced when vigorously fermented in MRS medium as a control. The growth of the fungus was very good and the fermentation was promoted. In this case, solidified yogurt was obtained.
These facts revealed that plant lactic acid bacteria can be used as a starter for the production of fermented foods and beverages such as yogurt.

  On the other hand, it is known that the growth of animal lactic acid bacteria generally used for the production of yogurt is inhibited by the presence of plant-derived polyphenols. Therefore, Lactobacillus casei, which is widely used for yogurt production, is used as a test bacterium, and when fermenting plant raw materials such as raw milk and vegetables, it is examined whether adding cocoa mass promotes fermentation. It was.

  As a result, it was found that the addition of 2% cocoa mass promotes the fermentation of Lactobacillus casei as in the case of Lacatobacillus plantarum. In this case, if the addition concentration of cocoa mass is increased, cocoa-flavored yogurt or the like can be easily obtained. In addition, when a cocoa mass suspension or a conditioned cocoa mass is used, fermentation with lactic acid bacteria proceeds and a fermented cocoa beverage or a fermented cocoa mass having a good flavor can be obtained.

By appropriately adding a sweetener to the obtained fermented cocoa beverage, it is possible to obtain a beverage having a good flavor and easy to drink. On the other hand, fermented cocoa mass can be applied to various confectionery such as baked confectionery such as biscuits and crackers, snacks, gum and candy as appropriate. It can also be used for fermented dairy products such as soft drinks and yogurt, and also for flavoring pickles and pickles.
The present invention has been completed based on the various findings described above.

The present invention according to claim 1 is a fermentation promoter for lactic acid bacteria characterized by containing cocoa mass as a growth promoter.
The present invention described in claim 2 is a method for producing a cocoa-flavored fermented milk beverage, wherein the fermentation promoter according to claim 1 is used.
The present invention described in claim 3 is a method for producing sour milk or yogurt, wherein the fermentation promoter according to claim 1 is used.
The present invention according to claim 4 is the method for producing sour milk or yogurt according to claim 3, wherein plant lactic acid bacteria are used as a starter in the production of sour milk or yogurt.
The present invention according to claim 5 is a method for producing a fermented cocoa beverage characterized in that cocoa mass is used as a raw material and plant lactic acid bacteria are used as a starter.

According to the present invention, a fermentation accelerator for lactic acid bacteria is provided. When this fermentation accelerator is used, the fermentation time by lactic acid bacteria is shortened, and fermented food and drink can be produced efficiently.
Moreover, by adding a fermentation accelerator, fermented foods can be produced by allowing lactic acid bacteria to act on raw materials that have not been used so far. Moreover, the fermented food / beverage products obtained have good flavor and can be applied to other confectionery.

The lactic acid bacteria that can be used in the present invention may be any of the aforementioned animal lactic acid bacteria and plant lactic acid bacteria, and lactic acid bacteria that can be used as a yogurt starter can be preferably used.
Examples of animal lactic acid bacteria that can be used in the present invention include Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus helveticus, Lactobacillus juguiri, Lactobacillus lactis, Lactobacillus leichmannii, Lactobacillus delbrueckii, Lactobacillus salvarius, Lactobacillus salvarius, Lactobacillus salvarius, Lactobacillus salvarius, Lactobacillus salvarius, rhamnosus, Lactobacillus casei var. alactosus, Lactobacillus fermenti, Lactobacillus buchneri, Lactobacillus brevis, Lactobacillus cellobiosus, Lactobacillus viridescencus, Streptococcus diacetiloc

Furthermore, plant lactic acid bacteria can also be used in the present invention. Examples of vegetable lactic acid bacteria derived from pickles include Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis, Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Teragenococcus halophilus, Lactobacillus curvatus, Lactobacillus fermentum, Pedeococcus pentosaceus, Pedeococcus acidilactici Baullus coagans and the like. Also, lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus plantrum SN35M isolated from fruit melon, Lactobacillus plantarum SN26N, Lactobacillus plantarum SN35N, Enterococcus mundtii SN29N isolated from pear can be used.
The various lactic acid bacteria shown above can be used as a starter, and these can be used alone or in appropriate combination of a plurality of types as necessary. It goes without saying that a starter using these lactic acid bacteria can use a solution of milk or skim milk powder or a cocoa mass suspension.

Examples of the raw milk that can be used in the present invention include mammals such as cows, horses, donkeys, goats, buffalos, yaks, sheep, reindeer, and soy milk of plant origin.
Examples of milk components include raw milk, processed milk, fresh cream, casein such as acid casein, rennet casein, sodium caseinate, and potassium caseinate, skim milk, powdered milk such as whole milk powder, skim milk powder, or milk. One or more dairy products such as purified protein can also be used.

  Furthermore, saccharides can also be used as fermentation by-products. As the saccharide that can be used in the present invention, any saccharide that can be assimilated by the test lactic acid bacteria can be used. For example, oligosaccharide, dextrin and starch. In addition, sugars that are not assimilated by lactic acid bacteria, such as indigestible dextrin, can be used as a sweetener as necessary. In addition, low-calorie sweeteners such as aspartame, saccharin, and stevioside can be used. Furthermore, for the purpose of improving water separation prevention and stability, thickening polysaccharides such as known agar, pectin, gelatin, guar gum, carrageenan, locust bean gum, and fats and oils are added. Etc. may be added as appropriate. In addition, plant raw materials can also be appropriately used as desired.

  Although there is no restriction | limiting in particular as cocoa mass which can be used by this invention, It is preferable to use the cocoa powder whose cocoa butter content used normally is 10 to 24 weight%. Cocoa butter-like fats and oils having a melting point of about 25 to 42 degrees obtained by subjecting palm oil, shear fat, iripe fat, salbutter, palm oil, palm kernel oil, etc. to operations such as refining fractionation and curing instead of cocoa butter Can be used.

  Lactic acid fermentation can be performed at 10 to 45 ° C., but it is possible to determine an appropriate temperature in consideration of the flavor of fermented food and drink such as fermented cocoa obtained. For raw milk, it is not necessary to perform special pH adjustment. In addition, abnormal fermentation can be suppressed for raw material milk by applying a generally used sterilization method such as autoclave sterilization or pasteurization as required.

  The present invention will be described in more detail by the following examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these examples.

Example 1
A 13% solution of skim milk powder (manufactured by Meiji Dairies) with or without 2% cocoa mass (Meiji Seika Co., Ltd.) was used as the medium. This medium was sterilized at 115 ° C. for 20 minutes and used for the test.
On the other hand, inoculated into a 20 ml capacity test tube containing 4 ml of a 13% skim milk solution prepared separately from Lactobacillus plantarum SN13T (hereinafter abbreviated as Lb. This was inoculated into a 13% nonfat dry milk solution to 2% (80 μl), followed by stationary culture at 37 ° C. for 40 hours.

  Samples were taken at 0 hours and 40 hours of the culture, and the amount of lactic acid produced was quantified by an enzymatic method to evaluate the degree of fermentation. That is, using a commercially available lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), the amount of NADH produced was quantified by absorbance at 340 nm, and the amount of lactic acid was quantified from the calibration curve prepared in advance. The results are shown in Table 1.

  As is apparent from the table, it was found that fermentation of lactic acid bacteria was promoted to about 4 cultures by adding cocoa mass. In addition, a cocoa-flavored yogurt solidified by culturing for about 30 hours was obtained from the test group with 2% cocoa mass added, but in the case of no cocoa mass added, no solidification was observed after 40 hours of culturing. In addition, when it implemented similarly except having made cocoa mass addition amount into 1%, the cocoa-flavored yogurt solidified by culture | cultivation for about 30 hours was obtained.

(Example 2)
After suspending cocoa mass (manufactured by Meiji Seika Co., Ltd.) in distilled water to 10% by weight, the mixture was stirred at 50 ° C. for 1 hour, and then a cocoa extract from which suspended matters were removed by centrifugation was prepared. A 13% solution of skim milk powder (manufactured by Meiji Dairies) with or without adding 10% of this cocoa extract (corresponding to a final concentration of 1% as the amount of cocoa mass added) was used as the medium. This medium was used for the test after autoclaving at 115 ° C. for 20 minutes.

  Lb. plantarum SN13T, Streptococcus lactis subsp. Lactis 527 (hereinafter abbreviated as Sc. Lactis 527), Lb. delbrueckii subsp. Bulgaricus B-5b (hereinafter abbreviated as Lb. bulgaricus B-5b) Inoculated with an inoculum culture solution prepared separately in the same manner as in Example 1 to 2% of the main culture medium volume, and Lb. plantarum SN13T, Sc. Lactis 527 was Lb. bulgaricus at 37 ° C. for 20 hours. B-5b was statically cultured at 30 ° C. for 20 hours.

Samples were taken at 0 and 20 hours of culture, and the amount of lactic acid produced was quantified by the same enzymatic method as in Example 1 to evaluate the degree of growth of the test bacteria. The results are shown in Table 2. The numerical values in the table indicate the amount of lactic acid produced.
As a result, in the cocoa extract addition test group, the growth promoting effect was seen in any lactic acid bacteria. In particular, Lb. plantarum SN13T promoted proliferation 4 times, and Lb. bulgaricus B-5b promoted proliferation 1.25 times. In addition, the growth inhibitory effect by cocoa mass was not recognized in any case. In the cocoa extract-added test group in which Lb. bulgaricus B-5b was tested, the amount of lactic acid produced reached 60 mM within 20 hours after culturing, whereas in the control cocoa extract-free group, the culture time was increased. Unless it was 30 hours or more, the amount of lactic acid produced did not reach 60 mM.

(Example 3) Production of cocoa-flavored yogurt 2 g of cocoa mass (manufactured by Meiji Seika Co., Ltd.) was suspended in 100 mL of milk. Inoculate 5 mL of this cocoa-containing milk with 5 mL of a starter (animal lactic acid bacteria Sc. Lactis 527 or plant lactic acid bacteria Lb. plantarum SN13T), transfer to a clean sterilized container, and incubate at 37 ° C. for 20 hours. Yogurt was prepared.
The taste of the prepared yogurt was subjected to a sensory test by 15 panelists and evaluated in five stages. The results are shown in Table 3.

  From the above results, it was found that the taste of yogurt prepared by the combination of cocoa mass and plant lactic acid bacteria was improved.

Example 4 Production of Fermented Cocoa Beverage 5% starter was inoculated into a 10% cocoa mass aqueous solution and cultured at 37 ° C. for 24 hours. After the obtained fermented cocoa beverage was cooled in a refrigerator for 3 hours, the taste was evaluated. In addition, the starter used what culture | cultivated Lb. plantarum SN13T for 20 hours at 37 degreeC in the culture medium which consists of a 13% solution of skim milk powder containing 2% cocoa mass on the day before fermentation. Moreover, what added 5% of sugar to the obtained fermented cocoa beverage, added 5% of coffee milk, or added both (see Table 4), and compared with cocoa before fermentation. As in Example 3, the evaluation was made on a five-point scale. The results are shown in Table 5.

  As is apparent from Table 5, it was shown that a delicious fermented cocoa beverage can be obtained by the present invention.

By using the fermentation accelerator for lactic acid bacteria according to the present invention, a fermented food or drink can be efficiently produced in a short time. In particular, fermented foods and beverages having improved flavor can be obtained using plant-derived lactic acid bacteria that have not been used in the production of fermented foods and beverages.

Claims (5)

  A fermentation promoter for lactic acid bacteria characterized by containing cocoa mass.   A method for producing a cocoa-flavored fermented milk drink, comprising using the fermentation accelerator according to claim 1.   A method for producing sour milk or yogurt, wherein the fermentation promoter according to claim 1 is used.   The method for producing sour milk or yogurt according to claim 3, wherein plant lactic acid bacteria are used as a starter in the production of sour milk or yogurt. A method for producing a fermented cocoa beverage, characterized by using cocoa mass as a raw material and using a plant lactic acid bacterium as a starter.