Preparation method of chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics

Abstract

The invention belongs to the technical field of fermented food, and particularly relates to a preparation method of chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics. The preparation method provided by the invention comprises the step of using a compound strain combination, wherein the compound strain combination is prepared from lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, lactobacillus plantarum TSP05 and lactobacillus helveticus RE-78. According to the method, the fermentation period is shortened to 5-8 days through bacterial strain function synergy, and the production efficiency is improved compared with that of a traditional process; the product is rich in volatile flavor substances and characteristic flavor substances such as esters and alcohols, and is matched with the traditional flavor; the total acid of the product reaches 2.74-3.01 g / 100g, the pH value is stabilized at 3.86 + / -0.02, chemical preservatives are not needed, the process is controllable, and the method is suitable for industrial large-scale production.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of fermented food technology, specifically relating to a method for preparing a chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics. Background Technology

[0002] Chili sauce, a fermented food that combines flavor and seasoning, is widely used in catering, cooking, and daily meals due to its unique spicy flavor, aroma, and convenient consumption method, making it a favorite condiment among consumers. Fermentation is the core process in chili sauce production. Through microbial metabolism, it breaks down carbohydrates, proteins, and other components in chili raw materials, generating organic acids, volatile flavor compounds, and other products, giving chili sauce a complex flavor profile including sourness and ester aroma, as well as good shelf life.

[0003] Natural fermentation is the main production method of traditional chili sauce. It relies on the natural microorganisms (such as lactic acid bacteria, yeast, mold, etc.) attached to the surface of chili raw materials to ferment spontaneously without artificial inoculation. However, this process has the following core problems: (1) The fermentation cycle is too long: During natural fermentation, the natural microorganisms proliferate slowly and have low metabolic efficiency. They are also significantly affected by factors such as environmental temperature, humidity, and the structure of the microbial community of the raw materials, resulting in a fermentation cycle of 120-180 days, which is extremely inefficient. The excessively long production cycle not only occupies a lot of production equipment and storage space, causing serious inventory backlog and increasing production costs, but also makes it impossible to respond quickly to market order demands, thus restricting the industrial large-scale supply capacity; (2) Poor flavor stability: The flavor formation of natural fermentation depends on the environmental microbial community. However, the types and proportions of microorganisms in different batches of raw materials and production environments vary, resulting in large fluctuations in product flavor and making it difficult to achieve standardized production; (3) During natural fermentation, the microbial community carried by the raw materials is complex. In addition to beneficial fermenting bacteria, there may be harmful microorganisms such as mold and pathogenic bacteria. If the fermentation process is not properly controlled, it can easily lead to product spoilage or the production of harmful substances such as aflatoxin, posing a food safety hazard; (4) Poor process controllability: Natural fermentation does not require artificial intervention, and the fermentation process and product generation cannot be precisely controlled, which can easily lead to problems such as incomplete fermentation, insufficient acidity, and bland flavor, resulting in a low product qualification rate.

[0004] To address the issues of long natural fermentation cycles and poor controllability, the industry has gradually adopted fermentation processes inoculated with lactic acid bacteria or yeast, improving process controllability. However, conventional fermentation processes generally suffer from the following drawbacks: when inoculating only a single lactic acid bacteria or yeast, due to limited metabolic pathways, only a portion of the substrates in the raw materials can be utilized for metabolism, resulting in fewer types of volatile flavor compounds and a lack of the complex flavor characteristics of traditional naturally fermented chili sauce, with insufficient key flavors such as ester aroma and aged aroma; while some high-acid-producing bacteria can rapidly lower the system pH and shorten the fermentation cycle, their ability to generate flavor compounds is weak; and strains with strong flavor-generating abilities often have slow acid production rates, leading to insufficient acidity in the product, making it difficult to achieve natural antibacterial effects and requiring the addition of chemical preservatives. In some existing technologies, fermentation with compound microbial strains is employed. For example, patent CN120982713A provides a production process for chili sauce fermented with compound lactic acid bacteria. The compound lactic acid bacteria are one or more of the following: Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus curvatureii, Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis, Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis, Lactobacillus johnsonii, and Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis. This production process improves production efficiency, but the patent does not specify the specific composition ratio of the compound lactic acid bacteria, but only a random combination of multiple strains. This cannot form a stable metabolic synergy, resulting in large batch differences in fermentation efficiency and product quality, making it difficult to achieve standardized industrial production. Furthermore, it does not specifically design for the generation of key flavor substances such as esters and alcohols, nor does it provide verification data on the content of related flavor substances. Therefore, it cannot prove that it can solve the core pain point of the single flavor of traditional fermentation, and it is difficult to meet consumers' demand for compound flavors.

[0005] Therefore, developing a well-defined combination of complementary microbial strains, combined with precise control of process parameters, to achieve efficient fermentation in a short cycle while simultaneously increasing the content of characteristic flavor substances such as esters and alcohols and preserving traditional complex flavors has become an important research direction and industry demand in the field of fermented foods. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To address the above shortcomings, this invention provides a method for preparing a chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics.

[0007] The technical solution of this invention is as follows: On the one hand, the present invention provides a method for preparing chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics. The preparation method includes using a compound microbial strain combination, which consists of Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, and Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78.

[0008] Specifically, the mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2-3:2-5:1-2.

[0009] Preferably, the mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2:3-5:1-2.

[0010] More preferably, the mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2:3:1.

[0011] Specifically, the preparation method includes the following steps: S1. Sterilize and cool the chili sauce before use; S2. Inoculate the compound microbial strain combination into the sterilized and cooled chili sauce from step S1 at an inoculation rate of 0.05wt%-0.2wt% and ferment. S3. After fermentation, sterilize to obtain chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics.

[0012] More specifically, the inoculation amount mentioned in step S2 is 0.0wt5%-0.06wt%, 0.06wt%-0.07wt%, 0.07wt%-0.08wt%, 0.08wt%-0.09wt%, 0.09wt%-0.10wt%, 0.10wt%-0.11wt%, 0.11wt%-0.12wt%, 0.12wt%-0.13wt%, 0.13wt%-0.14wt%, 0.14wt%-0.15wt%, 0.15wt%-0.16wt%, 0.16wt%-0.17wt%, 0.17wt%-0.18wt%, 0.18wt%-0.19wt%, or 0.19wt%-0.20wt%.

[0013] Preferably, the inoculation amount in step S2 is 0.08wt%-0.09wt%, 0.09wt%-0.10wt%, 0.10wt%-0.11wt%, 0.11wt%-0.12wt%, 0.12wt%-0.13wt%, 0.13wt%-0.14wt%, 0.14wt%-0.15wt%, 0.15wt%-0.16wt%, 0.16wt%-0.17wt%, 0.17wt%-0.18wt%, 0.18wt%-0.19wt%, or 0.19wt%-0.20wt%.

[0014] More preferably, the inoculation amount in step S2 is 0.080 wt%.

[0015] Preferably, the fermentation in step S2 is carried out at a constant temperature of 36-38℃ in a sealed environment for 5-8 days.

[0016] More preferably, the fermentation in step S2 is a constant temperature, sealed fermentation at 37°C for 5 days.

[0017] Preferably, the sterilization described in step S1 or step S3 includes pasteurization.

[0018] More preferably, the pasteurization conditions are pasteurization at 90-100℃ for 10-20 minutes.

[0019] More preferably, the pasteurization conditions are pasteurization at 95°C for 15 minutes.

[0020] In another aspect, the present invention provides a chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics, wherein the chili sauce is obtained by any of the preparation methods described above.

[0021] The method for preparing chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics provided by this invention solves the core problems of traditional chili sauce fermentation technology, such as long cycle, unstable flavor, and poor industrial adaptability, through innovative combination of compound microbial strains and precise optimization of fermentation process, and achieves the following significant beneficial effects: 1. The fermentation cycle is significantly shortened, and production efficiency is significantly improved: This invention, for the first time, combines *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 in a specific ratio, utilizing the synergistic metabolic effects of these four strains. The high acid production of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074 rapidly lowers the system pH, providing a suitable environment for the growth and metabolism of the other strains. The high environmental adaptability of *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05 ensures stable proliferation of the strain in the chili sauce matrix. *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 further enhances the synergistic metabolic efficiency, shortening the fermentation cycle from the traditional 120-180 days of natural fermentation to 5 days, increasing production efficiency by 24-36 times, and reducing equipment downtime by 96.7%. This optimization significantly reduces production equipment downtime, lowers inventory costs, enables rapid response to market orders, and significantly improves the economic benefits and market competitiveness of industrialized production.

[0022] 2. The flavor richness and stability are significantly better than traditional techniques: Traditional natural fermentation relies on environmental microorganisms, resulting in a limited variety of flavor compounds and significant batch-to-batch variations. Single-strain fermentation, due to its singular metabolic pathway, leads to insufficient production of key aroma compounds such as esters and alcohols. In this invention, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94 specifically promotes the production of ester flavor compounds. When combined with three other strains, it forms a complementary metabolic pathway, fully utilizing the carbohydrates and amino acids in chili peppers to generate 76-87 volatile flavor compounds (significantly higher than single-strain fermentation). The content of characteristic flavor compounds such as esters and alcohols is significantly increased, creating a complex flavor profile consistent with traditional natural fermentation, without the need for added flavorings, flavor enhancers, or other food additives. Furthermore, by precisely controlling process parameters such as fermentation temperature (36-38℃) and inoculum size (0.05wt%-0.1wt%), consistent flavor across different batches is ensured, addressing the industry pain point of unstable flavor in traditional fermentation.

[0023] 3. The product has prominent health attributes and is safer: This invention utilizes the highly efficient metabolism of compound microbial strains. After 5 days of fermentation, the total acid content of the product reaches 2.74-3.01 g / 100g, with a stable pH of 3.86±0.02. The natural acidity alone achieves excellent antibacterial effects, eliminating the need for chemical preservatives such as potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate, thus meeting consumers' demands for healthy food. Furthermore, all four strains used are publicly disclosed safe strains (with clearly defined preservation numbers and verified safety). No harmful substances are produced during fermentation, and the strain metabolites further enhance the product's nutritional value, achieving a perfect balance between flavor and health benefits.

[0024] 4. The process is adapted to industrial production, and the operation is simple and controllable. The preparation method of this invention is simple in steps, and the core process parameters (strain ratio, inoculum size, fermentation temperature, time, and sterilization conditions) are all quantitatively controlled. It can be precisely executed using conventional industrial fermentation equipment without relying on human experience. The pasteurization process (90-100℃, 10-15 minutes) effectively kills unwanted microorganisms in the raw materials, ensuring fermentation stability, while maximizing the preservation of the nutritional components and flavor precursors of the chili peppers. The constant-temperature, closed fermentation mode avoids interference from the external environment, making it suitable for large-scale continuous production. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The following non-limiting embodiments are intended to enable those skilled in the art to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the present invention, but do not limit the invention in any way. The following content is merely an exemplary description of the scope of protection claimed by the present invention, and those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the present invention based on the disclosed content, and such changes should also fall within the scope of protection claimed by the present invention.

[0026] The present invention will be further described below by way of specific embodiments. Unless otherwise specified, all instruments, devices, equipment, reagents, products, etc., used in the embodiments of the present invention are obtained through conventional commercial means.

[0027] The strains used in this invention: Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, accession number GDMCC No. 60766, disclosed in patent CN110591986A, purchased from Jinqi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., 1×10 11 CFU / g.

[0028] Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, accession number CGMCC No. 17752, disclosed in patent CN118872859B, purchased from Jinqi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., 1×10 11 CFU / g.

[0029] Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, accession number BCRC 910855, disclosed in patent CN118872859B, was purchased from Jinqi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., 2.5 × 10⁻⁶. 11 CFU / g.

[0030] Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78, accession number CGMCC No. 13513, disclosed in patent US11871775B2, purchased from Jinqi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., 3×10 10 CFU / g.

[0031] The *Bifidobacterium breve* CCFM1025 (GDMCC No. 60386), *Lactobacillus fermentum* TSF331 (CGMCC No. 15527), *Lactobacillus salivarius* AP-32 (CCTCC: M 2011127), *Bifidobacterium bifidum* VDD08 (CGMCC No. 15211), *Bifidobacterium longum* subsp. BL-G301 (CCTCC NO: M2013689), and *Lactobacillus johnsonii* MH-68 (CCTCC: M2011128) used in the comparative examples of this invention were all purchased from Jinqi Biotechnology Co., Ltd.

[0032] Example 1: Preparation of compound bacterial strain combination Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, and Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 2:2:3:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0033] Example 2 Preparation of compound bacterial strain combination Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, and Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 2:2:5:2 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0034] Example 3 Preparation of compound bacterial strain combination Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, and Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 2:3:2:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0035] Comparative Example 1: Preparation of Compound Microbial Strains Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, and Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 6:6:6:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0036] Comparative Example 2: Preparation of Compound Microbial Strains Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Bifidobacterium breve CCFM1025, Lactobacillus fermentum TSF331, and Lactobacillus salivarius AP-32 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 2:2:3:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0037] Comparative Example 3: Preparation of Compound Microbial Strains Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78, and Bifidobacterium bifidum VDD08 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 2:2:3:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0038] Comparative Example 4: Preparation of Compound Microbial Strains Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78, Bifidobacterium longum subsp. BL-G301, and Lactobacillus johnsonii MH-68 were mixed evenly in a mass ratio of 1:1:1:1:1:1 to obtain a compound bacterial strain combination.

[0039] Experimental Example 1: A method for preparing a chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics 1. Raw material pretreatment: Chili sauce (provided by Xinjiang Tunhe) is bottled into fermentation tanks, pasteurized at 95℃ for 15 minutes, and cooled to room temperature for later use; 2. Fermentation and sterilization: The compound strain combination of Examples 1, 2, 3 or Comparative Example 1, or Lactobacillus casei CCFM1074, or Lactobacillus rhamnosus NM-94, or Lactobacillus plantarum TSP05, or Lactobacillus helveticus RE-78, were added to the pasteurized chili sauce at an addition amount of 0.08 wt%. Fermentation was carried out for 5 days in a constant temperature and sealed environment at 37℃±1℃. After fermentation, pasteurization was carried out at 95℃ for 15 minutes and then cooled to 25℃±2℃.

[0040] 3. Indicator Measurement: 3.1 pH changes during fermentation Referring to GB 5009.237-2016 "National Food Safety Standard - Determination of pH Value in Food", the fermented chili sauce that has completed fermentation was taken out of the incubator, stirred evenly in a clean bench, and aseptically sampled. The pH value of the sample was then measured using a pH meter.

[0041] The measurement results are shown in Table 1: Table 1 pH changes during fermentation

[0042] 3.2 Changes in total acidity during fermentation Referring to the second method of pH meter potentiometric titration in GB 12456-2021 "National Food Safety Standard - Determination of Total Acid in Food", 25 g of fermented chili sauce sample was taken and titrated with 0.01 mol / L sodium hydroxide standard solution. The amount of alkali consumed when the pH was neutralized to 8.2 was recorded and the total acid content of the sample (calculated as lactic acid) was calculated based on this.

[0043] The measurement results are shown in Table 2: Table 2 Changes in total acidity during fermentation

[0044] 3.3 Changes in volatile flavor compounds Accurately weigh 1.25 g of fermented chili pepper sample, add 3 g of saturated saline solution, and add 20 μL of 3-methyl-2-heptanone. The chromatographic column was a DB-Wax (30 m × 0.23 mm × 0.25 μm); the sample heating time was 30 min, the oven temperature was 60℃, and the GC cycle time was 50 min; the temperature program was: initial 40℃, hold for 3 min, increase to 230℃ at 10℃ / min, hold for 5 min. The aging temperature was 270℃, and the aging time was 30 min.

[0045] The measurement results are shown in Table 3: Table 3. Content of volatile flavor compounds (types)

[0046] The results showed that the preparation method of chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics using the compound microbial strain combinations of Examples 1-3 of this invention maintained a stable pH of 3.86±0.02, and the total acid content reached 2.74-3.01g / 100g after 5 days of fermentation, meeting the product's acidity and natural antibacterial requirements. The number of volatile flavor compounds increased from 55-73 in single-strain fermentation to 76-87 in compound microbial strains.

[0047] In addition, the fermentation cycle of the chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics provided by the present invention is shortened from 120-180 days of traditional natural fermentation to 5 days, the production efficiency is increased by 20-30 times, the equipment occupancy time is reduced by 96.7%, and the market order can be responded to quickly, reducing the cost of inventory backlog. Experimental Example 2: Effects of different addition amounts on fermentation pH and total acidity 1. Raw material pretreatment: Chili sauce (provided by Xinjiang Tunhe) is bottled into fermentation tanks, pasteurized at 95℃ for 15 minutes, and cooled to room temperature for later use; 2. Fermentation and sterilization: The compound microbial strain combination of Example 1 was added to the pasteurized chili sauce at an addition rate of 0.05wt% or 0.20wt%, respectively. The mixture was fermented for 5 days in a constant temperature and sealed environment at 37℃±1℃. After fermentation, the mixture was pasteurized at 95℃ for 15 minutes and then cooled to 25℃±2℃.

[0048] 3. Indicator Measurement: 3.1 pH changes during fermentation pH changes were measured following the method described in Experimental Example 1. The results are shown in Table 4.

[0049] Table 4. Effects of different addition amounts on pH during fermentation.

[0050] 3.2 Changes in total acidity during fermentation The change in total acidity (p) was determined according to the method described in Experimental Example 1. The results are shown in Table 5.

[0051] Table 5. Effects of different addition amounts on total acidity during fermentation.

[0052] Finally, it should be noted that the above content is only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Simple modifications or equivalent substitutions made by those skilled in the art to the technical solution of the present invention do not depart from the essence and scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for preparing a chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics, characterized in that, The preparation method includes using a compound bacterial strain combination, which consists of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78, wherein the mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2-3:2-5:1-2.

2. The preparation method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2:3-5:1-2.

3. The preparation method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The mass ratio of *Lactobacillus casei* CCFM1074, *Lactobacillus rhamnosus* NM-94, *Lactobacillus plantarum* TSP05, and *Lactobacillus helveticus* RE-78 is 2:2:3:

1.

4. The preparation method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The preparation method includes the following steps: S1. Sterilize and cool the chili sauce before use; S2. Inoculate the compound microbial strain combination into the sterilized and cooled chili sauce from step S1 at an inoculation rate of 0.05wt%-0.2wt% and ferment. S3. After fermentation, sterilize to obtain chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics.

5. The preparation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The inoculation amount mentioned in step S2 is 0.08wt%-0.2wt%.

6. The preparation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The inoculation amount mentioned in step S2 is 0.08 wt%.

7. The preparation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The fermentation described in step S2 is a constant temperature, sealed fermentation at 36-38℃ for 5-8 days.

8. The preparation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The sterilization described in step S1 or step S3 includes pasteurization.

9. The preparation method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The pasteurization conditions are 90-100℃ pasteurization for 10-20 minutes.

10. A chili sauce with traditional flavor characteristics, characterized in that, The chili sauce is obtained by the preparation method according to any one of claims 1-9.

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