WO1997028701A1

WO1997028701A1 - Meat taste and texture modifier composition

Info

Publication number: WO1997028701A1
Application number: PCT/US1997/001879
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ronald R. Jenkins
Original assignee: Rhodia Inc.
Priority date: 1996-02-06
Filing date: 1997-02-06
Publication date: 1997-08-14
Also published as: AU2260697A

Abstract

A meat flavor and texture modifier composition comprises a blend of an oat hydrosylate extract together with a composite mixture of hydrocolloids, in particular, xanthan gum and locust bean gum in a 1:1 weight ratio. The flavor and texture modifier reduces the unpleasant, musty off-taste of liver and game meats and also adds bulk to provide a lubricous, fat-like sensation for a mouthfeel similar to that of standard, full fat products.

Description

MEAT TASTE AND TEXTURE MODIFIER COMPOSITION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to food additives, bulking agents and the like which alter the flavor or texture of the food product to which it is added. More specifically, the present invention relates to naturally occurring gum compositions which have been modified to alter the flavor or texture of meat preparations with otherwise bland or musty off tastes. Background of the Invention

Today^'s health conscious society is continually demanding better tasting low calorie and low fat food products. Present FDA regulations require that any lean or low fat products contain no more than 10% fat. However, in fresh ground meat products, when fat is reduced, the water content is increased proportionately. This has a direct effect on the meat products texture and color and can ultimately affect the meats flavor and taste as well. In nearly all food products fat contributes to flavor, texture and mouthful of the food in question and consequently its' reduction has a direct (usually negative) affect on the foods acceptability. One of the major problems that occurs with respect to meat texture when fat is removed is that the toughness of the product is significantly increased. Soy protein in particular has been used as a partial fat replacer with limited success in sausages and other ground meat products due to the off-taste attributable to the soy. Certain gums such as carrageen- an, guar and carboxymethyl cellulose have also been used to reduce the water content but these have generally been found to be detrimental to the meats texture. Polygalactomannans and their derivatives are well known compositions which have many uses as thickening agents in aqueous systems. They are polysaccharides composed principally of galactose and mannose units are usually found in the endosperm of leguminous seeds such as guar, locust bean, honey locust, flame tree and the like. Guar gum for example, is composed mostly of a polymannan with single-membered galactose branches. The ratio of galactose to mannose units in the guar polymer is 1:2.

Locust bean gum, also known as carob-seed gum, is a polygalactomannan of similar molecular structure in which the ratio of galactose to ammose is 1:4. Guar and locust bean gums are the preferred sources of the polygalactomannans, principally because of their commercial availability. Extracted from carob seeds of the tree Ceratonia siliqua. locust bean gum has a molecular weight of about 310,000. The gum swells in cold water, but its viscosity increases when heated. It is commonly added to foods as a thickener, stabilizer or emulsifier primarily in dairy products, confections and sauces.

Xanthan gum is a synthetic, water soluble bi-polymer derived from the fermentation of carbohydrates by several bacterial species of the genus Xanthomonas and is also useful as a thickening and suspension agent in numerous applications. It is stable in both strongly acidic and basic conditions and is also heat stable, thereby being useful in many chemical, pharmaceutical and in particular, food applications such as dairy products, beverages and high protein foods. Xanthan gum displays poorwettability properties however and is very difficult to disperse in water and/or hydrate. A high degree of shear is usually necessary to wet each gum particle in order to disperse it into solution. It is preferably produced as a dry particle for ease in storage prior to end use application and therefore it would be advantageous to develop a substantially dry, dust-free xanthan gum composition that is readily hydratable when ready for use.

Many meat preparations call for the shredding, chopping or grinding of the beef, pork or veal tissue into a homogeneous mass that may be formed and cooked into a texture that is easily chewed and ingested such as hamburger or ground chuck and sirloin. Additives have been created such as Hamburger Helper* by General Foods which gives increased bulk to the ground beef and thereby makes more for less.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,156,021 to Richardson discloses a food substitute that stimulates a natural food that is comprised of a major portion of fibrous cellulose particles, a natural oil such as vegetable oil and a hydrocolloid binder or mucilage such as guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan and other polygalactomannans. Appropriate flavor agents, colorants, emulsifiers and the like may be added according to taste and the type of food to be substituted.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,348,420 to Lynch et al. discloses the use of a hydrocolloid and a water soluble protein such as sodium caseinate, potassium caseinate or whey protein as a binder in pulverized meat applications such as hot dogs, sausages and cold lunch meat loaves. The hydrocolloid is selected from the group consisting of algin, carrageenan, guar gum, carboxymethyl cellulose and the like in amounts of from about 0.5% to 50% of the total weight of the binder. Xanthan is briefly men¬ tioned but not claimed. The water-soluble protein adds nutritional value to the final product while the hydrocolloid provides the binder functionally which holds the pulverized meat particles together.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,563,360 to Soucie et al. discloses the preparation of edible protein fiber complexes consisting of xanthan gum and a solubilized protein selected from the group consisting of soy protein, casein, egg protein, cottonseed protein, pea and sunflower protein and mixtures thereof. These fibers are used to provide or be formulated into simulated meat products.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,250 to Musson et al. teaches and claims thermo-irreversible aqueous gels which simulate the texture of natural meat tissues. These are produced through the reaction of aqueous solutions of xanthan gum and glucomannan with heat under neutral to alkaline pH conditions. The gel texture can then be modified through the incorporation of other hydrocolloids such as agar, carrageenan, pectin and alginate or other food materials such as minced meat, vegetables etc. to form the final product as desired.

In U.S. Pat. No. 5,049,401 to Harada et al., xanthan gum is disclosed as being one of a number of suitable natural polysaccharides including, among others, carrageenan, locust bean gum, guar gum, alginic acid, agar and the like that together with hydrophobically encapsulated acidic and alkaline materials are combined with glucomannan resulting in its coagulation to produce a low calorie food product that may be modified to stimulated sausage and other comminuted meat products.

Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,139,800 to Anderson et al. teaches the use of xanthan gum. among others, as a viscosifying agent which, together with a colorant such as caramel or food grade dyes, an oil such as soybean or saf flower oil and an emulsifier such as mono- and diglycerides provides a browning composition for meats such as chicken, beef, port or fish when cooked in a microwave oven. U.S. Pat. No 5,250,312 to Mason et al. discloses a coating mix for retaining moisture in meat, poultry and seafood consisting of hydrocolloid such as carrageenan and either micromilled or dissolved salt. The salt, together with carrageenan allegedly provides a rapid infusion of the mix into the food matrix and the hydrocolloid such as carrageenan then holds and binds water therein for a moist, juicy product after cooking.

The effect of xanthan gum as a fat replacement composition in the taste and textural properties of cooked pork sausage was investigated in an article by Barbut et al. Lehensom. - Wis. U. Technol. 25, 509-513 (1992). Sausage quality was measured in terms of texture, water retention, color and sensory characteristic. Xanthan gum alone (0.5%) provided good fat and moisture retention values but provided a sausage that was highly cohesive, gummy and chewy in texture.

United States Patent No. 5,294,456 to Jenkins et al. teaches a fat replacement composition comprised of a cereal hydrosylate, and a hydrocolloid such as carrageenan or a hydrocolloid blend comprising xanthan gum and locust bean gum. The fat replace r composition is useful in reducing the fat content of comminuted meat products.

United States Patent No. 5,294,457 also to Jenkins et al. discloses a thermo-irreversible gel composition also comprised of a soluble cereal hydrosylate and a hydrocolloid selected from the group consisting of carrageenan or a mixture of xanthan gum and locust bean gum. These thermo-irreversible gels are useful as filler or flavor carrier in foods and particularly in comminuted meat products.

It has been surprisingly and unexpectedly discovered however, that similar compositions are useful in the flavor modification or taste masking of strong flavored food products and in particular meat products which possess musty, liver flavor tones not generally appreciated by the average consumer. Liver flavor is present at various levels in a number of different meats and particularly in those meats used to make sausages such as liver, pork, pork jowl and the like. These compositions are also useful in the modification or taste masking of "gamey" flavors often associated with venison, goose, lamb, sheep and rabbit Comprised of an oat hydrosylate extract and hydrocolloid blend, these flavor modifier compositions make a wide variety of meat products and meat by-products more palatable in sausage and other comminuted meat products.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention comprisesa oat hydrosylate hydrocolloid gum blend that is useful as a flavor modifier in meats with strong musty flavor overtones such as liver, "gamey" flavors and the like. The blend not only improves the flavor by subduing the strong liver tastes but improves the texture and adds bulk to the meat product without additional calories and cholesterol.

Detailed Description of the Invention

The flavor and texture modifier of the present invention is useful in rendering meats with strong liver tastes such as braunschweiger and a wide variety of sausages more palatable by toning down or "removing" the otherwise unpleasant musty, heavy liver taste. The ingredients as a blend, also give the meat products a lubricous, fat-like organoleptic sensation. The modifier is comprised of a blend consisting of an oat hydrosylate and a hydrocolloid selected from the group consisting of xanthan gum. locust bean gum. carrageenan and the like. The blend composition, even when used in small amounts, surprisingly and unexpectedly modifies or masks musty liver and "gamey" tastes associated with many meat products. It also adds bulk and texture to more fully simulate a full fat product without the calories or cholesterol associated therewith.

The major component of the blend is an oat-based extract or oat hydrosylate which is the solids portion of the soluble fraction that remains after the partial hydrolysis of oat flour with an enzyme such as α- amylase. The hydrosylate has an elevated amount of /3-glucan and possesses an enhanced water retention capability. Also known as cereal hydrosylate, the compositions preparation and isolation is disclosed in United States Patent Nos. 4,996.063 and 5,082,673 both of which are assigned to G. Inglett and both of which are incorporated herein by reference. Commercially available as Oatrim*. the oat hydrosylate also serves as a fat mimic and replacer in a number of food products.

Hydrocolloids generally are plant extract or microbially derived materials that can provide a number of different functions when used in various food and chemical applications. For example, hydrocolloids provide excellent emulsifying, thickening and gelling characteristics. Hydrocolloids readily absorb water thus increasing the systems viscosity and thereby impart a smoothness to the texture of most products, even when used in very small amounts. Most are comprised of carbohydrate polymers but a few such as casein are proteins.

Xanthan gum is a water soluble bi-polymer produced by the fermentation of carbohydrates. Specifically, it is an anionic type of bio- synthetic polysaccharide composed of two monosaccharides, D-glucose and D-mannose and D-glucuronic acid that is produced by the fermentation of Xanthomonas campestris. When purified, the gum consists of a creamy white powder. Xanthan is comprised of a cellulose backbone of β (1-4) glucose units with trisaccharide side chains that are regularly positioned at alternating glucose units. These trisaccharide side chains contain two mannose and one glucuronic acid residues as well as a pyruvic acid group randomly substituted on the terminal mannose. Commercially available xanthan gum products include Rhodigel* EZ which is a food grade xanthan gum produced by Rhone Poulenc, Inc., Cranbury, New Jersey.

Xanthan gum is soluble in water and possesses a specific gravity or bulk density of 0.8. Its viscosity ranges from about 1,200 to about 1.600 cps and it is stable at pH values of from approximately 3.0 to about 9.0. The gum is substantially tasteless and therein provides an excellent functional component of foods requiring only physical modifications such as emulsification, bulk, moisture and the like.

Locust bean gum is an additional hydrocolloid which may be incorporated in the flavor modifier composition of the present invention. Locust bean gum, also known as carob seed gum, is a polysaccharide plant mucilage which is comprised primarily of galactomannan and is extracted, as its name implies, from carob seeds of the tree Ceratonia siliqua. The gum has a molecular weight of approximately 310,000, it swells when mixed in cold water and viscosity increases when the gum is heated.

The oat hydrosylate extract comprises the major component of the meat flavor modifier and is incorporated in amounts of from about 70 wt% to about 90 wt% of the total weight of the flavor modifier composition. Preferably, the oat hydrosylate extract comprises from about 80 wt% to about 90 wt% and most preferably is incorporated in an amount of about 85 wt9. of the flavor modifier composition.

The hydrocolloid portion of the flavor modifier preferably consists of the locust bean gum and xanthan bean gum fractions in equal amounts. Either gum may be used alone but best results are achieved when the two gums are used in a 50:50 blend. The blend then will comprise from about 10 wt% to about 20 wt% of the total weight of the composition. Preferably, each gum component comprises about 8.0 wt% of the total composition.

The flavor and texture modifier is then incorporated into the meat in amounts dictated essentially by the strength of the liver flavor involved. The flavor modifier compositions are particularly useful in comminuted meat products such as liver-based sausages, braunschweiger, pork sausage, frankfurters and the like. Comminuted lamb and goat tenderloins also lend themselves to use of the product. The modifier is generally incorporated into the meat product in amount of from about 3.0 wt% to about 8.0 wt% of the total sausage or meat composition and preferably in amounts of from about 4.0 wt% to about 6.0 wt%. Lesser amounts generally fail to sufficiently mask or modify the musky liver flavor while greater amounts unfortunately produce a meat product that lacks cohesiveness and readily crumbles with no form or shape.

The xanthan and locust bean gums, together with the oat bran hydrosylate also add bulk to the finished meat products and impart a lubricous, almost fat like texture to the sausages and patties made with the compositions of the present invention. This bulking agent property may also play a role in the compositions ability to modify the strong liver or musty tastes and provide a product that from a mouthfeel and texture standpoint fully simulates standard liver-based products yet tones down these otherwise objectionable flavors. In addition to the xanthan gum, locust bean gum and oat hydrosylate composition, other spices, flavorings and bulking agents may be added to the meat products for additional enhancement of flavor and taste. Preservatives such as sodium nitrate, sodium phosphate and the like may also be added as is traditionally known in the art. Other hydrocolloids such carrageenan and guar gum may also be used in conjunction with the xanthan gum and locust bean gum although replacement of the hydrocolloids is not preferred.

The following examples are provided to more fully describe and set forth the manner in which one skilled in the art may practice and appreciate the present invention. They are for illustrative purposes only, and it is understood that minor changes and variations can be made in the components and their amounts which are not specifically set forth therein. It is to be understood that to the extent any such variation does not materially change or alter the final product, it is still considered as falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as later recited in the claims that follow. Example 1

Three batch size samples of braunschweiger sausage (500 gm) were prepared by blending the following ingredients.

TABLE 1

XANTH AN LOCUST BEAN EFFECT ON FLAVOR INTENSITY

Food Medium: Braunschweiger & Pork Sausage

500 gram Batch Size

1. Rhone-Poulenc Inc., Cranbury, N J.

2. A blend of Oatrim. Oat Bran, and corn syrup solids. Rhone Poulenc Inc. The blended ingredients were molded into sausages and cooked as is known in the art: i.e. pan fried and/or broiled. The sausages maintained their body after cooking and were then taste tested by a number of laboratory personnel. The sausages from Examples 1 and 2 possessed little, if any strong liver flavors or notes and all tBree samples maintained much of the texture mouthfeel and succulence of a full fat product.

Claims

What we claim is:

1. A flavor and texture modifier composition comprised of oat hydrosylate and a hydrocolloid blend.

2. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 1 wherein said hydrocolloid blend is comprised of xanthan gum. locust bean gum and mixtures thereof.

3. The flavor and textu re modifier of claim 2 wherein said oat hydrosylate comprises from about 70 wt^r to about 90 wt% of the total weight of the composition.

4. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 3 wherein said hydrocolloid blend is comprised of a mixture of xanthan gum and locust bean gum in a 1:1 weight ratio.

5. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 4 wherein said locust bean gum comprises from about 5.0 wt% to about 15.0 wt% of the total weight of the modifier composition

6. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 5 wherein said locust bean gum comprises from approximately 5.0 wt% to about 10.0 wt% of the total weight of the modifier composition.

7. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 6 wherein said xanthan gum comprises from approximately 5.0 wt% to about 15.0 wt% of the total weight of the modifier composition.

8. The flavor and texture modifier of claim 7 wherein said flavor is a meat flavor selected from the group comprising liver, lamb, goat, game and mixtures thereof.

9. A composition useful in the flavor modification of strong tasting meat products comprising a mixture of an oat hydrosylate extract and a hydrocolloid blend.

10. The composition of claim 9 wherein said hydrocolloid blend comprises xanthan gum, locust bean gum and mixtures thereof.

11. The composition of claim 10 wherein said xanthan gum and locust bean gum are mixed in a 1:1 weight ratio.

12. The composition of claim 11 wherein said oat hydrosylate extract comprises from about 70 wt% to about 90 wt% of the total weight of the flavor modification composition.

13. The composition of claim 12 wherein said oat hydrosylate extract comprises from about 75 wt% to about 85 wt% of the total weight of the composition.

14. The composition of claim 13 wherein said hydrocolloid blend comprises from about 10 wt% to about 30 wt% of the total weight of the composition.

15. The composition of claim 14 wherein said hydrocolloid blend comprises from about 15 wt% to about 20 wt% of the flavor composition.

16. The composition of claim 15 wherein said hydrocolloid blend further comprises carrageenan. guar gum and mixtures thereof.

17. A method for the flavor and texture modification of liver flavored meats comprising the incorporation of an oat hydrosvlate hydrocolloid blend composition into a comminuted meat product.

18. The method for flavor and texture of claim 18 wherein hydrocolloid blend is comprised of xanthan gum. locust bean gum and mixtures thereof.

19. The method for flavor and texture of claim 19 wherein said oat hydrosylate extract comprises from about 70 wt% to about 90 wt% of the total weight of the composition. ₁₃

20. The method for flavor and texture of claim 20 wherein said hydrocolloid blend is comprised of a mixture of xanthan gum and locust bean gum in a 1:1 weight ratio.

21. The method for flavor and texture of claim 20 wherein said locust bean gum comprises from about 5.0 wt% to about 15 wt% of the total weight of the modifier composition.

22. The method for flavor and texture of claim 21 wherein said locust bean gum comprises from approximately 5.0 wt% to about 10.0 wt% of the total weight of the modifier composition.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein said xanthan gum comprises from approximately 5.0 wt% to about 15.0 wt9c of the total weight of the flavor modifier composition.