JP6074729B1 - Chocolate composition - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a chocolate composition that exhibits excellent plasticity by adding moisture, and further provides a chocolate product having excellent shape retention, low adhesion, and a resilient texture. A chocolate composition according to the present invention comprises (A) chocolate, (B) sodium alginate, or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt, and (C) a calcium salt, and contains 100 parts by mass of component (A). On the other hand, a component (B) and a component (C) are included in the ratio of 0.05-5 mass parts in total. Preferably, component (C) is a poorly water-soluble calcium salt. [Selection figure] None

Description

  The present invention relates to a chocolate composition that exhibits excellent plasticity by adding moisture, and further provides a chocolate product having excellent shape retention, low adhesion, and an elastic texture.

  Since ancient times, chocolate has been liked by many people all over the world, and has been attracting attention for its deliciousness, nutritional value, variety, and in recent years the effectiveness of polyphenols (cocoa polyphenols) contained in chocolate.

  However, solid chocolate is generally weak against heat, and is easily melted in a high-temperature atmosphere such as summer, and has poor shape retention. There is also a problem that the melted chocolate adheres to hands and clothes. Chocolate is a confectionery rich in fats and oils processed from cocoa beans, and cocoa butter (oils and fats), which is the main component, has a melting point of around 28 ° C. Therefore, when chocolate is placed in a higher temperature environment than that, it melts and cannot keep its shape, and it becomes sticky and loses its value as a product.

  Furthermore, chocolate may be used for decoration by being crafted like plants and animals, or other three-dimensional objects. In such a chocolate work, for example, there is a process in which chocolate is formed into a thin sheet shape and rolled, bent, or deformed like flowers and leaves. However, when chocolate is cooled, there is a problem that the time until solidification is short (poor plasticity) and it is difficult to work. That is, since the completely solidified chocolate does not have flexibility, when it tries to bend, there exists a problem that a crack will arise or it will be cracked and plasticity is scarce.

  For example, Patent Document 1 describes that plastic oil and fat containing a predetermined triglyceride is used as a substantial oil and fat content of chocolate to improve chocolate plasticity. However, although the plasticity is improved by the method of Patent Document 1, the shape of the molded chocolate cannot be maintained in summer, that is, it may be melted and sticky.

JP-A-7-264982

  An object of the present invention is to provide a chocolate composition that exhibits excellent plasticity by adding moisture, and further provides a chocolate product having excellent shape retention, low adhesion, and an elastic texture. It is in.

As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors have found a solution means having the following configuration, and have completed the present invention.
(1) (A) chocolate, (B) sodium alginate, or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt, and (C) calcium salt, and with respect to 100 parts by mass of component (A), component (B) and component ( C) in a ratio of 0.05 to 5 parts by mass in total.
(2) The chocolate composition according to the above (1), wherein the component (C) is a sparingly water-soluble calcium salt.
(3) Chocolate composition as described in said (1) or (2) in which a component (B) is contained in the ratio of 0.04-4 mass parts in conversion of sodium alginate with respect to 100 mass parts of chocolate.
(4) Chocolate composition in any one of said (1)-(3) in which a component (C) is contained in the ratio of 0.01-1 mass part with respect to 100 mass parts of chocolate.
(5) The chocolate composition according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the cocoa content contained in the component (A) is 5% by mass or more.
(6) A chocolate product comprising the chocolate composition according to any one of (1) to (5) above and water or a water-containing food.
(7) Including (A) chocolate, (B) sodium alginate, or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt, and (C) calcium salt, component (A) is added in an amount of 0. The manufacturing method of a chocolate product including the process of obtaining the chocolate composition containing in the ratio of 05-5 mass parts, the process of mixing a chocolate composition, water or a water-containing food, and obtaining a mixture, and the process of shape | molding a mixture.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a chocolate composition that exhibits excellent plasticity by adding water, and further provides a chocolate product having excellent shape retention, low adhesion, and an elastic texture. Can do.

The chocolate composition of the present invention includes the following components (A) to (C), and 0.05 to 5 in total of components (B) and (C) with respect to 100 parts by mass of component (A). Included in parts by mass.
Ingredient (A): Chocolate Ingredient (B): Sodium alginate or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt Ingredient (C): Calcium salt

The component (A) contained in the chocolate composition of the present invention is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include chocolate containing 5% by mass or more of cacao. The “cocoa content” means the total ratio of cocoa mass and cocoa butter contained in chocolate. Specific examples of such chocolate include the following (a) to (d), and in this specification, “chocolate” is described as a generic term for these (a) to (d).
(A) Chocolate: 21% by mass or more of cacao content, and containing components such as sugars, dairy products, other edible oils and fats, and fragrances as necessary.
(B) Semi-chocolate: A cocoa component containing 5% by mass or more and less than 21% and optionally containing the above components.
(C) Chocolate confectionery: Chocolate is combined with edible foods such as nuts, raisins, almonds, peanuts, wheat, sesame, dried fruits, cookies, biscuits, etc., and chocolate is less than 60% by mass.
(D) Semi-chocolate confectionery: The above-edible food is combined with semi-chocolate, and the semi-chocolate is less than 60% by mass.

  Examples of the component (A) contained in the chocolate composition of the present invention include white chocolate, milk chocolate, sweet chocolate and the like. The ratio of the cacao mass contained in chocolate is not specifically limited, Usually, it is 98 mass% or less. As the proportion of cocoa mass increases, the proportion of other components such as sugar decreases, so that the bitterness derived from cocoa mass increases. When it does not contain cacao mass, white chocolate is obtained.

  Furthermore, behenic acid (BOB: 1,3-dibehenyl-2-oleyl glycerin) may be added to the chocolate as an oil. When BOB is added, so-called “fat bloom” in which the chocolate surface turns white can be suppressed, which is also effective for releasability and gloss.

  The component (B) contained in the chocolate composition of the present invention acts as a gelling agent. Ingredient (B) may be contained in the form of sodium alginate in the chocolate composition of the present invention, or may be contained in the form of alginic acid and sodium salt. Furthermore, all of sodium alginate, alginic acid and sodium salt may be included. Since alginic acid and sodium alginate are finally present as a gel in the chocolate product, the degree of polymerization and molecular weight are not particularly limited.

  The sodium salt is used for converting alginic acid to sodium alginate when a chocolate product is produced by adding water or water-containing food described later to the chocolate composition. The sodium salt is not particularly limited as long as it is a sodium salt that can be added to foods, such as sodium carbonate, sodium citrate, sodium chloride, and the like. Among these, a water-soluble sodium salt is preferable, and sodium carbonate is more preferable.

  The component (C) contained in the chocolate composition of the present invention is used for gelling by crosslinking sodium alginate when a chocolate product is produced by adding water or water-containing food described later to the chocolate composition. . The calcium salt is not particularly limited as long as it is a calcium salt that is allowed to be added to food, such as calcium citrate, calcium carbonate, calcium chloride, and the like. Among these, a slightly water-soluble calcium salt is preferable, and calcium citrate is more preferable.

In the chocolate composition of the present invention, preferable contents of the component (B) and the component (C) are as follows with respect to 100 parts by mass of the component (A). In addition, about component (B), content converted to sodium alginate is shown. This is because even when alginic acid and a sodium salt are used as the component (B), they are finally converted to sodium alginate.
Component (B): 0.04 to 4 parts by mass, more preferably 0.5 to 1.5 parts by mass Component (C): 0.01 to 1 part by mass, more preferably 0.1 to 0.3 parts by mass

  The chocolate composition of the present invention may contain components that are allowed to be added to foods, such as thickening polysaccharides, sugar alcohols, and nuts, as necessary, as long as the effects of the present invention are not impaired. Good. For example, thickening polysaccharides can adjust (delay) the dissolution rate of calcium salts. As a result, gelation is suppressed even when a water-soluble calcium salt is used, so that the time required for molding can be increased. Moreover, since sugar alcohol can reduce a water activity, the preservability of the chocolate product obtained using the chocolate composition of this invention can be improved.

  Examples of the thickening polysaccharide include xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, tamarind gum, gum arabic, and alginic acid ester. Examples of the sugar alcohol include xylitol, lactitol, mannitol, maltitol, sorbitol, erythritol and the like.

  Next, the reason why the chocolate composition of the present invention exhibits excellent plasticity by adding moisture will be described. When moisture is added to the chocolate composition of the present invention, the component (B) reacts with the component (C) in the presence of water and gels. When alginic acid and sodium salt are used as component (B), first, alginic acid and sodium salt react in the presence of water to produce sodium alginate. Specifically, when sodium alginate comes into contact with calcium ions present in water derived from component (C), it crosslinks and gels. In the present invention, it is important to control the gelation rate. For example, when producing a chocolate product, if the gelation proceeds faster than the time required for chocolate molding (solidification), the chocolate is already gelled even when trying to mold the chocolate into the desired shape. Have difficulty. If you try to force it, the gel will be destroyed and the shape retention of the chocolate product will be impaired.

  Therefore, the chocolate composition of the present invention may contain 0.05 to 5 parts by mass of the component (B) and the component (C) with respect to 100 parts by mass of the component (A). is important. By including the component (B) and the component (C) at such a ratio in total, the gelation rate can be controlled. Therefore, after the addition of moisture, the time required for molding can be ensured for a long time, and a chocolate composition exhibiting excellent plasticity can be obtained. When the total amount of the component (B) and the component (C) is less than 0.05 parts by mass, there are too few components involved in gelation, so that sufficient plasticity is not exhibited. In addition, the amount of gel produced is small, and the resulting chocolate product has poor shape retention. On the other hand, when the component (B) and the component (C) exceed 5 parts by mass in total, since there are too many components involved in the gelation, the gelation tends to proceed and it is difficult to control the gelation rate. When the gelation proceeds, the chocolate solidifies and the desired plasticity cannot be obtained.

  In the chocolate composition of the present invention, as described above, it is preferable to use a slightly water-soluble calcium salt as the component (C). When a poorly water-soluble calcium salt is used, the calcium salt is hardly dissolved in water, so that the calcium ion concentration in water does not increase rapidly, and the crosslinking reaction due to contact between sodium alginate and calcium ions does not proceed easily. As a result, since gelation is suppressed, when molding a chocolate product using the chocolate composition of the present invention, it is possible to ensure a longer time required for molding.

  Next, the chocolate product of the present invention includes the chocolate composition of the present invention and water or a water-containing food. The water or water-containing food contained in the chocolate product of the present invention acts as a solvent for reacting the above alginic acid and sodium salt, and a solvent for reacting sodium alginate and calcium salt. Examples of water-containing foods include liquid or paste-like foods containing moisture, such as fresh cream, milk, yogurt, fruit juice, liquor, liqueur and the like. Water or a water-containing food is preferably used in a proportion of 5 to 22 parts by mass, more preferably 8 to 20 parts by mass in terms of the amount of water with respect to 100 parts by mass of the chocolate composition of the present invention.

  The production method of the chocolate product of the present invention is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a method of mixing and molding the chocolate composition of the present invention and water or a water-containing food. Specifically, the chocolate product of the present invention is obtained by the following method.

  First, the component (A) is heated and melted, and then the components (B) and (C) are added and mixed well to obtain a chocolate composition. A component (B) is added so that it may become a ratio of 0.05-5 mass parts with respect to 100 mass parts of components (A). Water or a water-containing food is added to the obtained chocolate composition and heated as necessary to obtain a mixture. Next, this mixture is formed into a desired shape. The molding method is not particularly limited. For example, it may be solidified by putting it in a mold, and the melted chocolate is spread thinly and rolled, bent or deformed in a flexible sheet shape, and plants such as flowers and leaves The shape may be crafted into a desired shape such as a three-dimensional object. Or you may inject | pour and use in baked confectionery, such as a shoe, a fertilizer, and a pot.

  The chocolate composition of the present invention exhibits excellent plasticity by adding moisture. Therefore, it is possible to ensure a relatively long processing time and workmanship, and it is possible to easily form a desired shape. The chocolate product obtained by using the chocolate composition of the present invention has an excellent shape retaining property because the shape is maintained by gelation, and is difficult to adhere to hands and the like. Furthermore, when a chocolate product is eaten, a so-called “mochimochi” texture that is elastic with gel is obtained, and a unique texture can be enjoyed.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example and a comparative example are given and this invention is demonstrated concretely, this invention is not limited to these Examples.

Example 1
First, “raw material 1” listed in Table 1 was blended in the blending amounts listed in Table 1, heated to 45 ° C., stirred and melted. “Raw material 2” shown in Table 1 was added to the obtained melt in the amount shown in Table 1 to obtain a chocolate composition. The blending amount of “raw material 2” of alginic acid and sodium carbonate is 1.52 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of chocolate in terms of sodium alginate. In addition, about "the raw material 3" described in Table 1, after mixing beforehand and heating to 40 degreeC and making it melt | dissolve completely, the melt | dissolution thing was hold | maintained at 30 degreeC.

  Next, the obtained chocolate composition was tempered at 30 ° C. for 10 minutes by a conventional method. Add the resulting melt (raw material 3) to the temperature-controlled chocolate composition and attach a stirring blade called a beater using a vertical mixer (universal mixing stirrer, manufactured by Sanei Seisakusho Co., Ltd.) The mixture was stirred at 60 rpm for 3 minutes and 40 seconds. After stirring, the mixture was filled into a mold conditioned at 25 ° C. using an air bag. Next, the mold was lightly vibrated (tapped), the surface of the mixture filled in the mold was smoothed, and bubbles were removed. Then, it cooled at 12 degreeC for 30 minute (s), confirmed that it was fully set, and peeled the molded article from the type | mold. After peeling, in order to stabilize the chocolate crystals, the molded product was stored at 18 ° C. for 7 days to obtain a chocolate product.

(Examples 2 and 3)
A chocolate product was obtained in the same procedure as in Example 1 except that “Raw material 1”, “Raw material 2” and “Raw material 3” shown in Table 2 were used in the blending amounts shown in Table 2. The blending amounts of “raw material 2” of alginic acid and sodium carbonate are 1.14 parts by mass in Example 2 and 1.53 parts by mass in Example 3 with respect to 100 parts by mass of chocolate in terms of sodium alginate. .

Example 4
A chocolate product was obtained in the same procedure as in Example 1 except that “Raw material 1”, “Raw material 2” and “Raw material 3” shown in Table 3 were used in the blending amounts shown in Table 3. The blending amount of “raw material 2” of alginic acid and sodium carbonate is 1.52 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of chocolate in terms of sodium alginate.

(Comparative Examples 1-4)
A chocolate product was obtained in the same procedure as in Example 1 except that “Raw material 1”, “Raw material 2” and “Raw material 3” shown in Table 4 were used in the blending amounts shown in Table 4.

  About the chocolate product obtained in Examples 1-4 and Comparative Examples 1-4, (1) Shape retention and (2) adhesiveness were evaluated by the following method. Furthermore, (3) plasticity was evaluated by the following method.

(1) Shape retention The chocolate products obtained in Examples 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 1 to 4 were allowed to stand in an environment of 35 ° C. Two hours later, the shape of the chocolate product was visually observed and evaluated according to the following criteria. In the case of “C evaluation”, it was evaluated that shape retention was poor. The results are shown in Table 5.
<Evaluation criteria>
A: When the shape is not substantially deformed compared to before the experiment.
B: Although it is slightly deformed compared to before the experiment, it was within the range acceptable as a product.
C: The case where it was greatly deformed compared with before the experiment, or the case where it was melted and became liquid.

(2) Adhesiveness The chocolate products obtained in Examples 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 1 to 4 were allowed to stand in an environment at 25 ° C. for 2 hours. Thereafter, the panelist (body temperature 36 ° C.) was allowed to press the chocolate product with the finger for 10 seconds, and the finger was visually observed and evaluated according to the following criteria. In the case of “C evaluation”, it was evaluated that adhesion was poor. The results are shown in Table 5.
<Evaluation criteria>
A: When chocolate is not attached to the finger.
B: The chocolate is slightly adhered to the finger, but the stickiness is not a concern.
C: When chocolate adheres to the finger and is sticky.

(3) Plasticity In Examples 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 1 to 4, the mixture before filling into the mold was poured into a 50 mm × 50 mm square mold so that the thickness was 2 mm, and the mixture was allowed to stand still in a 25 ° C. environment. I put it. After 30 minutes, the sheet-like molded product was folded, and resistance such as hardness, cracks and cracks were evaluated according to the following criteria. In the case of “C evaluation”, it was evaluated that the plasticity was poor. The results are shown in Table 5.
<Evaluation criteria>
A: When there is no resistance, no cracks or cracks occur, and it can be bent at 90 degrees.
B: When a slight resistance was felt, but cracks and cracks did not occur and the sheet could be bent at 90 degrees.
C: When cracks or cracks occur before bending to 90 degrees.

  As shown in Table 5, in Examples 1-4, it turns out that it is excellent in all of shape retention property, adhesiveness, and plasticity. On the other hand, it turns out that in Comparative Examples 1-4 which does not contain at least one of a component (B) and a component (C), shape retention property, adhesiveness, and plasticity are scarce.

Claims (7)

(A) Chocolate,
(B) sodium alginate or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt ,
( C) a calcium salt , and
At least one thickening polysaccharide selected from the group consisting of guar gum, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, tamarind gum, gum arabic and alginate ,
The chocolate composition characterized by including a component (B) and a component (C) in the ratio of 0.05-5 mass parts in total with respect to 100 mass parts of components (A).   The chocolate composition according to claim 1, wherein the component (C) is a sparingly water-soluble calcium salt.   The chocolate composition according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the component (B) is contained in a proportion of 0.04 to 4 parts by mass in terms of sodium alginate with respect to 100 parts by mass of the chocolate.   The chocolate composition in any one of Claims 1-3 in which the said component (C) is contained in the ratio of 0.01-1 mass part with respect to 100 mass parts of said chocolates.   The chocolate composition according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a cacao content in the component (A) is 5% by mass or more.   A chocolate product comprising the chocolate composition according to claim 1 and water or a water-containing food. (A) chocolate, (B) sodium alginate, or a mixture of alginic acid and sodium salt , ( C) calcium salt , and selected from the group consisting of guar gum, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, tamarind gum, gum arabic and alginic acid ester A step of obtaining a chocolate composition comprising at least one thickening polysaccharide and containing 0.05 to 5 parts by mass of component (B) with respect to 100 parts by mass of component (A);
Mixing the chocolate composition with water or water-containing food to obtain a mixture, and molding the mixture;
A method for producing a chocolate product.