Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Products per se – or processes of preparing or treating... – Fat or oil is basic ingredient other than butter in emulsion...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-26
2003-06-17
Paden, Carolyn (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Products per se, or processes of preparing or treating...
Fat or oil is basic ingredient other than butter in emulsion...
C426S613000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06579558
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is a process for manufacturing an oil-in-water type emulsified food and also an oil-in-water type emulsified food prepared by this process. The oil-in-water type emulsified food is preferably a semisolid, such as mayonnaise. The physical properties of the emulsified food exhibit little change during manufacturing, when made by the process of the present invention.
2. Discussion of the Background
Semisolid oil-in-water type emulsified foods such as mayonnaise are commonly made by mixing an aqueous phase material consisting of egg, vinegar, salt, seasoning, etc., and an oily phase material consisting of an edible fat/oil, thereby forming an oil-in-water type emulsified food. The compounding ratio of the aqueous and oily phases has been studied (see, for example, “Influence of Compounding Ratio of Materials on Properties of Mayonnaise”,
Kaseigaku Zasshi
, vol. 31, no. 9, 1980). In general, it is known that increasing the amount of vinegar, or increasing the mixing temperature of the ingredients, results in a softer product. Consequently, the usual temperature which is suitable for manufacturing mayonnaise is 15 to 20° C. (see, for example, “Knowledge of Mayonnaise and Dressing” by Tadahira Imai, published by Saiwai Shobo, 1993; “Knowledge of Fat/Oil Products” published by Saiwai Shobo, 1977; etc.).
When the ingredients of the aqueous phase material are mixed, and then immediately thereafter the aqueous phase material is mixed and emulsified with the oily phase material, the viscosity of the resulting emulsified food increases significantly. This phenomenon is called “setup.” However, when this emulsified food is used (for example, poured into containers, incorporated into other foods, etc.), the viscosity decreases. In other words, the viscosity properties of the emulsified food made by this process are unstable.
Alternatively, if the ingredients forming the aqueous phase are mixed at a high temperature or for a long time, phase inversion of the emulsified product is likely to occur, and it is also possible that the emulsified product may become less stable. Therefore, in order to make an oil-in-water type emulsified food with a constant viscosity, it is usually necessary to manufacture the food at constant temperature, i.e., within a 15 to 20° C. temperature range.
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A-04-316462 proposes a different process for manufacturing an emulsified food, in order to provide improved cold resistance. In this process, the aqueous phase is heated to a temperature range of 45 to 50° C. and then mixed with an oily phase at around 50° C. However, these higher temperature conditions are employed to melt oily phases which have a melting point of 0° C. or higher. In addition, JP-A-04-316462 does not describe the mixing time nor does it describe or evaluate the effects of the mixing time on the stability of the physical properties of the emulsified product.
Alternatively, there are many proposed processes for stabilizing the physical properties of emulsified foods by adding a specific protein (see, for example, Japanese Patent Kokai Publications JP-A-61-141861, JP-A-56-151479 and JP-A-06-319477, etc.), an acid (see, for example Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A-55-108260, etc.) or a thickener (see, for example, Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A-05-146269, etc.) to either the aqueous phase or the oily phase. However, none of these processes provide an excellent emulsified product by mixing egg and vinegar (acetum; acetic solution); instead, they involve adding an emulsifier other than egg.
Consequently, there is a need for an oil-in-water type emulsified food product in which the aqueous phase contains egg and vinegar, and the physical properties of the emulsified product are stable. There is also a need for a method of evaluating such stabilized physical properties.
An object of the present invention is to manufacture an oil-in-water type emulsified food in which “setup” and phase inversion do not occur to any significant extent during the manufacturing process, and the physical properties of the product are stable during use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A stable oil-in-water type emulsified food, preferably a semisolid emulsified food having an aqueous phase material containing at least egg and vinegar, can be made by emulsification of the above-described aqueous phase material with an oily phase material, when the oily phase material contains more than 20% by weight of a fat/oil having a melting point lower than 0° C., and the composition of the aqueous phase, mixing temperature, and mixing time of the egg with the vinegar are controlled.
The stable oil-in-water type emulsified food of the present invention may be any oil-in-water type emulsified food product, such as mayonnaise, sauces (i.e, hollandaise), salad dressings, etc. The emulsified food may be essentially a fluid, preferably a semisolid emulsified food.
The term “fat/oil” means fat(s) or oil(s), fat(s) and oil(s), etc. The term “fat/oil” may include mixtures of fats, mixtures of oils, and mixtures of fats and oils. A fat is any glycerol ester of a fatty acid, and an oil is a water-immiscible liquid of animal, vegetable, or synthetic origin.
It has been found that the stability of the physical properties of the emulsified product can be improved by mixing the aqueous phase materials and oily phase materials for a short time within a relatively high temperature range, or by mixing the aqueous and oily phase materials for a long time within a relatively low temperature range. A useful index for the stability of the physical properties of the emulsified product is the percent change in elastic modulus during storage, G′. The change in elastic modulus is determined by comparing the elastic modulus of the emulsified product measured during storage, and measured while using the product (e.g., when the emulsified product is poured into a container, shaken, or used in another process). An emulsified product has stable physical properties when the change in the elastic modulus is small.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A preferred process for manufacturing an oil-in-water type emulsified food involves emulsifying an aqueous phase material and an oily phase material having the compositions described above into an oil-in-water type emulsion. The egg and vinegar components of the aqueous phase are mixed under the following conditions:
a. When the mixing temperature, T, is 30 to 55° C., preferably 35 to 50° C., more preferably 40 to 50° C., the mixing time t (minutes) may be calculated using the formula t=10
6
×e
aT
. The coefficient “a” has a value of −0.2 to −0.3, preferably −0.22 to −0.27, more preferably −0.23 to −0.261. When the mixing temperature is 50° C. (i.e., T=50° C.) for example, the mixing time is 2 to 10 minutes when a is within a range of −0.23 to −0.26.
b. When the mixing temperature is 0 to 15° C. preferably 0 to 10° C., more preferably 0 to 5° C., the mixing time should be from 1 day to 1 week, preferably 1 to 5 days, more preferably 1 to 3 days.
When the mixing temperature is higher than 55° C., there is a higher probability that egg proteins may be denatured. When the mixing temperature is lower than 0° C., it is possible that the aqueous phase may solidify. Neither situation is preferred.
Improvements in the physical properties of the emulsified product may preferably be expressed by the change in elastic modulus (G′) of the emulsified product. The change in elastic modulus is determined by first allowing the emulsified product to stand immediately after it is manufactured, then measuring the elastic modulus. The elastic modulus is then measured after applying a load to the emulsified product which is greater than or equal to the yield stress. The change in elastic modulus can then be determined by comparing the two elastic modulus measurements. The physical properties of the emulsified product may be considered to be “improved
Hotta Masayuki
Kajiura Masatoshi
Konoike Tatsuo
Maruyama Kentaro
Tsujimura Hamana
Ajinomoto Co. Inc.
Paden Carolyn
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