FR2570253A1 - Method for treating wheat gluten, gluten in the form of granules obtained by this method and food product containing this gluten - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates essentially to a method for treating wheat gluten. According to this method, wheat gluten in the form of powder is hydrated with coloured and flavoured water in order to form a lump of coloured and flavoured gluten which undergoes a pre-cooking, and then the pre-cooked lump is minced into the form of granules which, in turn, undergo a cooking in a bath of hot water before being drained in order, finally, to give gluten granules which cannot re-agglomerate together and are suitable for mixing homogeneously with a food product in order to confer thereon all the desired organoleptic qualities. The wheat gluten thus prepared is intended for incorporation in minced meat in order to produce, for example, burgers.

Description

 The present invention essentially relates to a process for treating wheat gluten.

 It also relates to gluten in grains obtained by this process as well as food products containing this gluten.

 It is already known to include various types of vegetable proteins in certain food products in order to improve their nutritional qualities. For example, proposals have already been made to incorporate wheat gluten into minced meat preparations. To achieve this incorporation, several techniques have already been proposed.

 Powdered dry gluten is sprinkled in a mincer containing the meat, then the mixture is hydrated. Alternatively, you can still hydrate the powdered gluten first, then chop and mix the hydrated gluten with meat.

 We know how to incorporate rehydrated gluten in meat up to amounts close to 30%, but we have found that, as soon as the amount exceeds 15 ÓS the meat preparation is far from having the qualities sought after and is therefore not satisfactory for the consumer.

More specifically, it has been found that the incorporation of wheat gluten into meat according to the prior techniques led to a denaturation of the taste, aroma and consistency of the product.

 The aim of the present invention is therefore to remedy the above drawbacks in particular by proposing a special and very elaborate process for treating wheat gluten in situ which, once prepared, can be mixed with foodstuffs such as meat, up to amounts in the region of 30 ° C. without any deterioration of the said foodstuffs, which are therefore completely fit for consumption. In addition, the consumer will experience, in particular in terms of taste, aroma and consistency, the sensation to consume a traditional product.

 To this end, the subject of the invention is a process for treating wheat gluten and of the type consisting in hydrating powdered wheat gluten intended to be mixed with a food product, characterized in that, before carrying out this mixing , the powdered wheat gluten is hydrated with colored and flavored water to form a colored and flavored gluten dough which is precooked, then the precooked paton is chopped into grains which are, in turn, subjected to cooking in a hot water bath before being drained to finally give gluten grains which cannot re-agglomerate with each other and are therefore able to mix homogeneously with a food product to give it in particular the desired organoleptic qualities.

 It is therefore already understood that the process of the invention makes it possible to prepare wheat gluten in grains in situ by means of a very sophisticated technique of texturing, coloring and flavoring, making it possible to obtain a product ideally capable of being mixed. meat for example so as to give this meat all the qualities required for consumption.

 The invention also relates to a food product, such as minced meat for example, which is mixed with gluten in grains obtained by the process defined above, which gluten has been hydrated beforehand at 250-300 Ó before this mixing.

 This food product may advantageously contain a quantity of gluten in grains of up to 30 Ó and, for such a quantity, this product will have all the desirable organoleptic qualities.

 However, other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear better in the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the method, the principle of which has been stated above.

 It is known that wheat gluten is the wheat protein obtained after wet separation from the other constituents of flour, and is commercially available in the form of a powder ranging from light yellow to brown.

 In accordance with the invention, and according to an exemplary embodiment, this powdered wheat gluten is firstly hydrated by mixing and kneading in a tank with approximately 150 to 180 Ó of colored and flavored water.

 In this respect, one can use all the water-soluble dyes, authorized by the regulations in force, and giving a red tint corresponding to that of the meat.

The amounts of color in the water can vary depending on the type of color and the meat preparation involved.

 Also, it is possible to use for flavoring, all flavoring or flavoring agents soluble in water and authorized by the regulations in force. The amounts of flavor are of course variable depending on the type of flavor used.

 Having thus hydrated the wheat gluten as explained previously, a colored and flavored gluten dough is obtained which is subjected to a precooking carried out preferably in a water bath at a temperature between approximately 95 and 100 ° C. for a time between approximately 7 and 15 minutes.

 Then, the precooked dough is passed through a chopper through a grid, the openings or interstices of which are between 2 and 10 mm.

 This operation therefore makes it possible to transform the dough into gluten grains which are in turn subjected to cooking by soaking these grains in a water bath at a temperature between approximately 95 and 1000C for a time preferably between approximately 3 and 15 minutes. It should be noted here that an extension of the cooking time beyond 15 minutes can be carried out, although this is not absolutely necessary, without risk of altering the characteristics of the gluten grains.

 Finally, the gluten grains are drained for a time which can be, for example, between 15 and 30 minutes.

 The gluten which has been treated as indicated above is in the form of small beads which are characterized by their inability to re-agglomerate with one another despite kneading-pressing and are therefore quite capable of mixing in a homogeneous manner. with minced meat for example. It will be specified here that the gluten according to the invention has a hydration rate of 250-300 Ó.

 It should be noted here that the gluten treated according to the invention can be stored for a few hours or can be subjected to freezing, which allows it to be stored for several months before its use.

 The incorporation of gluten prepared in accordance with the invention in meat, for example, makes it possible to obtain a food product having all of the desirable organoleptic qualities and which can perfectly contain up to approximately 30% of gluten without in any way altering these qualities.

 To illustrate this situation, an example of minced meat preparation with gluten treated according to the invention will be given below, compared to a minced meat preparation containing a soy isolate which, as is known, is another type of protein.

 Preparing two samples of beef? one containing gluten in grains prepared according to the invention, and the other containing soy isolate, is carried out as follows.

 A quantity of meat with gluten treated according to the invention is mixed in a HOBART type mixer, and a quantity of meat with soy isolate previously rehydrated to 300 D.

 Then, the two samples are chopped through a grid with 3 mm openings. Then, we proceed to the forming of the meat steaks which we cook to finally taste them.

 The amounts of gluten and isolate incorporated into the meat tested were 20, 25 and 30, Ó compared to this meat.

The results of the tasting tests are as follows - As regards texturing, and at higher quantities
less than 20 Ó there are no significant differences
between the sample containing gluten and the one containing
soy isolate.

- On the other hand, with regard to juiciness, and in quantities
greater than 20, gluten-based preparations are
much more regular and stable than those based
soy isolate and generally they are
much better accepted.

- Likewise in quantities greater than 20 Io, the preparations
based on gluten are much more stable and better accepted
teas in terms of taste than those based on isolate.

- Finally, the cooking is done in all cases a lot
faster with gluten-containing meat according to the in
vention.

 Consequently, after having carried out a treatment in accordance with the invention on wheat gluten, it is possible to produce meat-based food preparations which are, in many respects, clearly more advantageous than those based on wheat gluten untreated or based on other proteins.

 Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described which has been given only by way of example.

 This is how coloring could be perfectly achieved during the precooking of the dough and / or during the final cooking of the gluten grains provided that the doses of coloring and the cooking time are somewhat increased.

 This means that the invention includes all the technical equivalents of the means described as well as their combinations if these are carried out according to the spirit.

Claims (6)

 1.- Process for treating wheat gluten and of the type consisting in hydrating powdered wheat gluten intended to be mixed with a food product, characterized in that before carrying out this mixing, the powdered wheat gluten is hydrated with colored and flavored batten to form a colored and flavored gluten dough which is precooked, then the precooked dough is chopped into grains which are in turn baked in a hot water bath before be drained to finally give gluten grains which cannot re-agglomerate with each other and are therefore able to mix homogeneously with a food product to give it in particular the desired organoleptic qualities.  2.- Method according to claim 1, characterized in that: the hydration of the powdered wheat gluten is carried out by kneading it with about 150 to 180 S of colored and flavored water; the aforementioned precooking of the colored and flavored dough is carried out in a water bath at a temperature between about 95- and 1000C for a time between about 7 and 15 minutes; the aforementioned dough is chopped by passing it through a grid with interstices of dimensions between approximately 2 and 10 mm; the aforementioned cooking of the grains after chopping the dough is carried out by soaking these grains in a water bath at a temperature between about 95 and 100 C for a time preferably between about 3 and 15 minutes; and the draining of the aforementioned grains is carried out for a time of between approximately 15 and 30 minutes and is optionally followed by freezing of these grains.  3.- Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the gluten thus treated is hydrated at a rate between 250 and 300 Ó.  4.- Gluten obtained by the process according to one of claims 1 to 3.  5. Food product, such as minced meat for example, which is mixed with gluten according to claim 4.  6. Food product according to claim 5, characterized in that it contains an amount up to about 30% of the aforementioned grain gluten.