JP6638129B2 - Gel food - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a gel food suitable for a jelly drink or the like which can supply a large amount of protein.

  Due to recent changes in the form of food, consumers have been favoring gel foods such as jelly drinks that have a meal replacement function, and among them, gel foods that can supply more protein as a nutrient are required. ing.

  Gel foods are mainly prepared in a gel form using a thickening polysaccharide called a gelling agent. Gellan gum, agar, carrageenan, xanthan gum, locust bean gum and the like are known as gelling agents used for gel foods. In particular, gellan gum has the advantages of forming a gel with a small amount of addition, having high heat resistance, high acid resistance, not forming into a sol at 100 ° C. or lower, and having good preservability. Widely used as an agent.

  Generally, when producing a gel food containing protein, production conditions, distribution control conditions, and the like differ depending on the pH of the product. In other words, since the types of microorganisms that can grow in the low pH range are limited, if the gel food is adjusted to be acidic, even if the protein is abundantly contained, deterioration is less likely to occur than in the neutral food, and distribution There is an advantage that temperature control at the time becomes easy. Further, even in the case of performing a sterilization treatment, long-time high-temperature sterilization such as retort sterilization is not required, so that deterioration of flavor and content components is small.

  However, in the prior art, when an attempt is made to gel a protein solution under acidic conditions, the protein and gellan gum react to cause aggregation or precipitation, and gellan gum loses gelling ability and cannot form a gel. There was a problem.

  To solve such a problem, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses that by blending soybean polysaccharide, it is possible to gel even a gel food containing a high protein content. Has been described.

JP 2004-298047 A

  However, when the soybean polysaccharide is used, there are problems that the flavor deteriorates, the viscosity increases, and the production cost increases.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is a gel food using gellan gum as a gelling agent, which contains a sufficient amount of protein for nutritional supplementation, and can improve the gel even when adjusted under acidic conditions. It is to provide a gel food which can be formed and has a good flavor.

  The present inventors have conducted intensive research to solve the above problems, and contained in the entire gel food, by setting the concentration of gellan gum and the concentration of whey protein in a predetermined range, even under acidic conditions. The inventors have found that gel formation can be performed using gellan gum, and have completed the present invention.

That is, the gel food of the present invention is a gel food containing gellan gum and whey protein, and contains the gellan gum concentration X (% by mass) and the whey protein concentration contained in the whole gel food. Y (% by mass) satisfies the following formula (1), the following formula (2), and the following formula (3).
X ≧ 0.2 (1)
Y> 0 (2)
Y ≧ -20.9X + 16.6 (3)

  In the gel food of the present invention, the pH is preferably 3.0 to 4.6.

  According to the present invention, a gel food using gellan gum as a gelling agent, which contains a sufficient amount of protein for nutritional supplementation and can form a gel well even when adjusted under acidic conditions. In addition, it is possible to provide a gel food having good flavor.

9 is a table showing the results of Test Example 2 performed to specify the concentration range of gellan gum and whey protein related to the possibility of gelation.

  The present invention is a gel food containing gellan gum. The type of gellan gum may be either deacylated gellan gum or native gellan gum, but it is preferable to use deacylated gellan gum from the viewpoint of heat resistance after gelation.

  The gel food of the present invention further contains whey protein. As the whey protein, for example, a whey protein isolate (WPI) or a whey protein concentrate (WPC) having a high protein content and a low content of components other than the protein can be preferably used. In particular, it is preferable to use a protein prepared so as to maintain the protein in an undenatured state. According to this, the protein has a better flavor, and is excellent in solubility and absorbability as compared with the protein in which the protein has been denatured. In addition, the flavor is excellent as compared with the peptidized one. Further, in the case of the non-denatured one, the effect of enhancing the immunity by the antibody contained in the whey protein can be expected as compared with the denatured one or the peptide one.

In the present invention, as shown in a test example described later, the concentration of gellan gum and the concentration of whey protein need to be within a predetermined range. More specifically, the concentration X (% by mass) of gellan gum and the concentration Y (% by mass) of whey protein contained in the whole gel food are determined by the following formulas (1), (2), and Equation (3) must be satisfied.
X ≧ 0.2 (1)
Y> 0 (2)
Y ≧ -20.9X + 16.6 (3)

  The lower limit of the gellan gum concentration range needs to be 0.2% by mass or more, preferably 0.3% by mass or more, and more preferably 0.4% by mass or more. The upper limit of the concentration range of gellan gum is not limited as long as it can be dispersed and dissolved, but is preferably 2.0% by mass or less, more preferably 1.5% by mass or less, and more preferably 1.0% by mass. It is even more preferred that: If the concentration of gellan gum is less than 0.2% by mass, gelling does not occur even if the amount of whey protein used is increased, which is not preferable.

  The lower limit of whey protein is not particularly limited, but is preferably 5% by mass or more, more preferably 8% by mass or more, and even more preferably 10% by mass or more. The upper limit of whey protein is not particularly limited as long as it can be dissolved, but is preferably 30% by mass or less, more preferably 25% by mass or less, and even more preferably 20% by mass or less. In addition, in the case of a gel food such as a jelly drink for the purpose of supplementing protein, from the viewpoint of ensuring a sufficient intake per meal, whey protein is 5% by mass or more based on the whole gel food. It is preferably contained, more preferably at least 8% by mass.

  The gel food of the present invention is preferably adjusted to be acidic. More specifically, it is preferable to adjust the pH to 3.0 to 4.6 by adding or blending a pH adjuster, and it is more preferable to adjust the pH to 3.5 to 4.0. For example, if the pH exceeds 4.6, the types of microorganisms that can grow are increased, which is not preferable because the danger in food hygiene increases. Further, if it is less than 3.0, the acidity becomes too strong, which is not preferable. Various acidulants such as citric acid, malic acid, lactic acid, succinic acid, tartaric acid, ascorbic acid, and gluconic acid and salts thereof can be used as the pH adjuster.

  Further, the above-mentioned deacylated gellan gum has a gel-forming ability in the presence of various cations, and in particular, gelation is promoted in the presence of divalent cations. Therefore, the gel food of the present invention preferably contains a divalent cation. Examples of the divalent cation raw material include calcium salts such as calcium lactate, calcium chloride, calcium phosphate, calcium gluconate and calcium citrate, and magnesium salts such as magnesium chloride and magnesium sulfate. The blending amount of the divalent cation raw material is, for example, calcium lactate, preferably 0.05 to 1% by mass, and preferably 0.1 to 0.6% by mass, based on the gellan gum concentration, depending on the gellan gum concentration. Is more preferred.

  In the gel food of the present invention, as components other than the above, thickening polysaccharides other than gellan gum, sugars, high-intensity sweeteners, vitamins, amino acids, minerals, fruit juice, flavoring agents, coloring agents, seasonings , Dietary fiber and the like can be appropriately added. There is no particular limitation on the order of addition or the method of addition.

  Examples of thickening polysaccharides other than gellan gum include agar, carrageenan, furcellulan, sodium alginate, locust bean gum, xanthan gum, guar gum, glucomannan, and the like, and these may be used alone or in combination of two or more. it can.

  Sugars include glucose, fructose, sugar, maltose, lactose, trehalose, erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol, maltodextrin, and the like, and high-sweetness sweeteners include aspartame, stevia, acesulfame K, sucralose, and soumatin. These can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  As vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin F, vitamin H, vitamin K, vitamin P, pantothenic acid, choline, folic acid , Inositol, niacin, paraaminobenzoic acid (PABA) and the like, and these can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  Examples of amino acids include alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, asparagine, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, proline, serine, threonine, tryptophan, tyrosine, valine, and the like. Can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  Examples of the mineral include sodium chloride and potassium chloride, and these can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  The gel food of the present invention can be obtained by mixing gellan gum, whey protein, and other components as necessary, preferably adjusting the acidity, and then performing gelation. Specifically, after gellan gum is dispersed in water and heated to prepare a gellan gum solution, whey protein and other components are mixed if necessary, and preferably adjusted to acidic by adding a pH adjuster. To form a mixed solution. At this time, the whey protein and other components may be directly added to the gellan gum solution, or may be added to the gellan gum solution after being dispersed and dissolved in advance. Gelation can be performed by cooling the mixture. In addition, from the viewpoint of ease of production, gelling is preferably performed after filling the packaging container, but after gelation, molding or packaging may be performed.

  The gel food of the present invention obtained as described above preferably has a solid content of 3 to 40% by mass, more preferably 5 to 25% by mass. The gel strength varies depending on the type and form of the gel food container. For example, a compression test using a rheometer (manufactured by San Kagaku: CR-500DX) (measurement conditions: plunger diameter 10 mm, moving speed 60 mm) / Min, approach distance 20 mm), and the breaking strength when the gel breaks is preferably 0.1 to 10 N, and more preferably 0.1 to 5 N.

  The packaging container is not particularly limited, but is preferably a container suitable for eating a gel food, and any material such as metal, glass, paper, plastic, and resin film can be used as the container material. There is no limitation on the shape of the container as long as it is suitable for eating the gel food, and cans, bottles, paper packs, plastic cups, film pouch containers, pouch containers with spouts (spouts), and three-way containers Soft packaging such as a seal can be used.

  The gel food of the present invention obtained by the above-mentioned production method is subjected to a sterilization treatment or the like, if necessary, and is distributed and sold. As a sterilization method, a method of heat-sterilizing and hot-packing before filling in a container, a method of heat-sterilizing after filling and sealing, and a method of heat-sterilizing a gel food before filling in a container, and then filling under aseptic conditions Any method such as aseptic filling is possible.

  As described above, the gel food of the present invention is preferably adjusted to be acidic. According to this, deterioration by microorganisms is unlikely to occur, and sterilization conditions can be relaxed, and there is no need to perform high-temperature sterilization for a long time such as retort sterilization. Therefore, deterioration of the flavor and content components due to sterilization is small.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to Test Examples, but these Test Examples do not limit the present invention at all.

<Test Example 1>
In gelled foods containing gellan gum and whey protein, the possibility of gelation at each concentration of gellan gum and whey protein was examined.

  The following were used as whey proteins.

[Whey protein]
-"NZMP8899" manufactured by Fonterra (undenatured, containing 85% by mass of whey protein)
-"Provon 190" manufactured by Granvia Nutritions (undenatured, containing 85% by mass of whey protein)
・ Nippon Shinyaku Co., Ltd. “Lactocrystal” (undenatured, containing 85% by mass of whey protein)
"IsoChill9000" manufactured by Trega Foods (undenatured, containing 85% by mass of whey protein)

  The gel food was produced as follows.

[Method for producing gel food]
Deacylated gellan gum (manufactured by Kelco) was dispersed and dissolved in water to a concentration of 0.2% by mass, 1.0% by mass, or 2.0% by mass to obtain a gellan gum solution.

  Whey protein was dispersed and dissolved in water so as to be 2% by mass, 10% by mass, 20% by mass, or 30% by mass to obtain a protein solution. In addition, 1.0 mass% of calcium lactate was added to each concentration of the protein solution, and further, citric acid (anhydrous) was added to adjust the pH to about 3.3 to 3.8.

  50 parts by weight of the gellan gum solution was heated to 90 ° C. and mixed with 50 parts by weight of the protein solution previously heated to 60 ° C. The mixture was filled in a 100 mL plastic container, and cooled in a thermostat at 29 ° C. for 15 minutes. After cooling, the presence or absence of gelation was confirmed.

  Table 1 shows the results of using "NZMP8899" manufactured by Fonterra as whey protein.

  Table 2 shows the results obtained by using "Provon 190" manufactured by Granvia Nutritions as whey protein.

  Table 3 shows the results obtained by using "Lacto Crystal" manufactured by Nippon Shinyaku as whey protein.

  Table 4 shows the results of using "IsoChill9000" manufactured by Trega Foods as a whey protein.

  As described above, it was clarified that gel was not formed in a region where the concentrations of gellan gum and whey protein were low, while gel formation was possible in a region where the concentrations were high. The tendency was the same when any of the above products was used as whey protein.

<Test Example 2>
From the results of Test Example 1, the possibility of gelation was considered to depend on the concentrations of gellan gum and whey protein, so a more detailed test was performed to identify the concentration range related to the possibility of gelation. Specifically, with the composition shown in Table 5 below, a test was performed in the same manner as in Test Example 1 on whether gelation was possible at each concentration of gellan gum and whey protein. In addition, "NZMP8899" manufactured by Fonterra was used as the whey protein. Table 5 and FIG. 1 show the results.

As a result, similarly to the result of Test Example 1, no gel was formed in a region where the concentrations of gellan gum and whey protein were low, but it was clarified that gel formation was possible in a region where those concentrations were high. . For example, gelation was possible in a gellan gum concentration of 0.2% by mass or more and in a concentration range (region A) represented by a region at the upper right of the solid line in FIG. In the region A, the concentration X (% by mass) of gellan gum and the concentration Y (% by mass) of whey protein are within a concentration range satisfying the following formulas (1), (2), and (3). is there.
X ≧ 0.2 (1)
Y> 0 (2)
Y ≧ -20.9X + 16.6 (3)

Claims (1)

And deacylated gellan gum, an acidic gelled food product comprising a whey protein material consisting of whey protein isolate (WPI) and / or whey protein concentrate (WPC), containing with respect to the total acidic gelled food, wherein the concentration of the deacylated gellan gum concentration X (mass%) and whey protein by the whey protein material Y (mass%) but the following formula (1), the following equation (2), and Shi satisfy the following formula (3) The breaking strength in a compression test using a rheometer (measurement conditions: using a plunger diameter of 10 mm, a moving speed of 60 mm / min, and a penetration distance of 20 mm) is 0.1 to 10 N, and the pH is 3.0 to 4.0. 6. An acidic gel food, wherein the food is an acidic gel food.
X ≧ 0.2 (1)
Y ≧ 5 (2)
Y ≧ -20.9X + 16.6 (3)