Flavor improving agent for food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat

Abstract

To provide an agent effective for improving a flavor of food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat, and a method effective for improving a flavor of food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat.SOLUTION: A flavor improving agent for food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat includes a palmitoleic acid as an active ingredient, with regard to an agent effective for improving a flavor of food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat. A flavor improving method for food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat includes adding the flavor improving agent to food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat, with regard to a method effective for improving a flavor of food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat. The method preferably includes adding the flavor improving agent to food and beverages containing vegetable oil and fat so that a concentration of the palmitoleic acid becomes 1 ppb to 1%.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a flavor improving agent for vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, the diversification of consumer preferences has led to a demand for the development of various products that meet consumer needs. For processed foods and beverages that contain fats and oils, the important appeal is the satisfying feeling and texture derived from the fats and oils, but it has been difficult to produce products with a satisfactory flavor in terms of processing and raw material prices. For this reason, there is a strong demand for flavor improvement to impart and enhance aromas and flavors such as milky and oily flavors to foods that contain fats and oils. In addition to the main component triglyceride, fats and oils contain various free fatty acids, alcohols, aldehydes, monoglycerides, diglycerides, vitamins, etc., and it is believed that these components together constitute the flavor of fats and oils.

[0003] Among the components that constitute the flavor characteristics of oil-containing foods and beverages, for example, for oils and fats, several compounds have been proposed for use in imparting their aroma and flavor. For example, Patent Document 1 describes that δ-lactones such as δ-tridecalactone, δ-tetradecalactone, δ-hexadecalactone, and δ-octadecalactone are useful as oily feel enhancers. However, these compounds have aromas other than the oily feel, and are not necessarily satisfactory as oily feel enhancers. In addition, Patent Document 2 describes a sesame-like freshly roasted, freshly ground, and oily feel enhancer composed of 2-methyl-3-thiophenethiol, and Patent Document 3 describes a sesame-like freshly roasted, freshly ground, and oily feel enhancer composed of 3-mercapto-3-methylbutylformate. However, these compounds enhance a specific oily feel, that is, a sesame-like oily feel. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-83264 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2010-148411 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2010-148412 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Conventional materials are not effective enough in effectively improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oils and fats, and the development of further materials is required. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an agent that is effective in improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oils and fats. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present inventors have conducted extensive research to solve the above problems and have surprisingly found that a specific fatty acid is excellent for improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oils and fats. Thus, the outline of a representative invention among the inventions disclosed in this application is briefly described as follows. [1] A flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages, containing palmitoleic acid as an active ingredient. [2] A composition for use as an additive to vegetable oil-containing food or beverage, comprising the flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [1]. [3] A composition for use as an additive to vegetable oil-containing food and beverages, comprising palmitoleic acid. [4] A vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition according to [2] or [3], which is used to improve the flavor of vegetable oil-containing food and beverage. [5] A method for improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, a flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [1], or a composition for adding an additive to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [2] or [3] to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. [6] A method for improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [5], which comprises adding palmitoleic acid, the flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [1], or the composition for adding an additive to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [2] or [3] to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage so that the concentration of palmitoleic acid is 1 ppb to 1% of the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. [7] A method for producing a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, a flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [1], or a composition for adding an additive to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [2] or [3] to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. [8] A method for producing a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [7], comprising adding palmitoleic acid, the flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [1], or the composition for adding an additive to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in [2] or [3] to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage so that the concentration of palmitoleic acid is 1 ppb to 1% of the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. Effect of the Invention

[0007] The present invention can provide an agent that is effective for improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oils and fats. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to specific examples. In this specification, the symbol "to" means a range including a lower limit and an upper limit, and concentrations (ppt, ppb, ppm, etc.) and % mean mass concentrations and mass %, respectively, unless otherwise specified, and concentrations refer to final concentrations unless otherwise specified.

[0009] [Flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages] A flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages according to one embodiment of the present invention (sometimes referred to herein as the present flavor improver) contains palmitoleic acid as an active ingredient, and can be added to foods and beverages containing various vegetable oils and beverages (sometimes referred to herein as vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages) to improve the flavor of the foods and beverages. Note that palmitoleic acid means free palmitoleic acid unless otherwise specified. Palmitoleic acid is not necessarily a constituent fatty acid found in large amounts in vegetable oils and beverages, and it was a surprising discovery that this fatty acid is effective in improving the flavor of vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages.

[0010] As used herein, "flavor" refers to one or more sensations that can be altered by the sense of smell and / or taste. The flavor of a food or drink may also be referred to as its taste.

[0011] In this specification, the term "adding" includes at least one of simply adding to an object by spraying, dropping, or the like, and mixing with an object.

[0012] In the present specification, the term "vegetable oil" refers to any oil obtained from a plant, such as from the seeds, fruits, stems, leaves, or other parts of the plant. Representative examples include, but are not limited to, avocado oil, linseed oil, almond oil, perilla oil, olive oil, cacao butter, cashew oil, macadamia nut oil, walnut oil, grapeseed oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, rice oil, corn oil, soybean oil, rapeseed oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, hazelnut oil, safflower oil, cottonseed oil, and cocoa butter.

[0013] In this specification, the term "food and drink containing vegetable oil" refers to a food and drink containing the above-mentioned vegetable oil, and the term "food and drink" refers to any edible product. The content of vegetable oil in the food and drink is not particularly limited, and is preferably a content at which the eater can sense the flavor derived from the vegetable oil, and can be exemplified as 0.01 to 100% (100% means the vegetable oil itself), and is preferably 0.1% or more, 1% or more, 3% or more, 5% or more, 8% or more, 10% or more, 13% or more, 15% or more, 18% or more, 20% or more, 30% or more, 40% or more, 50% or more, 60% or more, 70% or more, 80% or more, or 90% or more, but is not limited thereto. Specific examples include foods and beverages that use various food and beverage ingredients that contain vegetable oils and fats, such as avocados, nuts (typically almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, cashew nuts, macadamia nuts, etc.), soybeans, olives, coconuts, sesame, rice, corn, cacao beans, etc. More specific examples of foods and beverages will be described later.

[0014] In this specification, "improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or drink" includes making the flavor of the vegetable oil-containing food or drink to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention has been added a flavor with high palatability, and preferably includes making the flavor of the vegetable oil-containing food or drink to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention has been added a flavor with high palatability by imparting one or more of richness, juiciness, full-bodiedness, satisfaction, creaminess, smoothness, moistness, sweetness, melt-in-the-mouth, mellowness, flavor unity, satisfaction, and lingering aftertaste to the flavor of the vegetable oil-containing food or drink to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention has been added. More preferably, it includes improving the flavor of the vegetable oil-containing food or drink by imparting a vegetable oil feel to the vegetable oil-containing food or drink to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention has been added.

[0015] In the present specification, the term "vegetable oily feel" includes a mellow and smooth oily feel, and more preferably includes a feeling that is smooth, not heavy or light, and includes a mellow but oily flavor that lingers on the tongue, and preferably means a feeling that is different from the somewhat peculiar smell and taste of animal oils and fats, and the sticky heavy oily feel. In addition, in the present specification, "imparting a vegetable oily feel (imparting a vegetable oily feel)" includes adding a new vegetable oily feel to the target to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added and / or enhancing the vegetable oily feel of the target to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added, and includes, for example, improving (particularly enhancing) the vegetable oily feel of the target to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added, or improving the overall flavor of the target to which the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the addition of the flavor improving agent of the present invention can provide a feeling that more vegetable oil has been used than actually used (a feeling that the vegetable oily feel has been enhanced). Therefore, the flavor improving agent of the present invention can also be used as an agent for imparting a vegetable oily feel to vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages.

[0016] The present flavor improving agent may contain, in addition to palmitoleic acid, any other components such as auxiliary components such as solvents and antioxidant components (specific examples are given in the section below titled "Production method of flavor improving agent for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages"), but may also consist essentially of palmitoleic acid. When the present flavor improving agent contains components other than palmitoleic acid, the concentration of palmitoleic acid in the present flavor improving agent can be determined arbitrarily depending on the degree of the flavor improving effect.

[0017] When the flavor improving agent of the present invention substantially contains only palmitoleic acid, or only palmitoleic acid and its solvent or dispersion medium, the concentration of palmitoleic acid in the flavor improving agent of the present invention can be, for example, in the range of 100 ppb to 100%, and preferably in the range of 10 ppm to 99%. For example, commercially available palmitoleic acid with a purity of 95% or more (e.g., 98%, 99%, etc.) can be used as the flavor improving agent of the present invention.

[0018] Since palmitoleic acid, the active ingredient of the present flavor improver, is oil-soluble, by making the present flavor improver into an oil-in-water emulsion formulation, the palmitoleic acid does not separate from the water even when added to various foods and beverages, and it can be used in a wide range of foods and beverages. Also, by making it into an emulsion formulation (the method of which is exemplified in the section below titled [Method of manufacturing a flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages]), the flavor improving effect may last longer than palmitoleic acid itself or a solution in which palmitoleic acid is simply dissolved in a solvent.

[0019] When the flavor improving agent of the present invention is added to a vegetable oil-containing food or drink, the concentration of palmitoleic acid, which is an active ingredient, in the vegetable oil-containing food or drink can be arbitrarily determined according to the desired flavor improving effect, but the present inventors have at least confirmed that the flavor of various vegetable oil-containing foods or drinks can be improved if the concentration is within the range of 1 ppb to 1% relative to the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or drink. Therefore, in one aspect of the present invention, the concentration may be an appropriate concentration within the range of 1 ppb to 1%, and for example, the lower limit may be any of 1 ppb, 10 ppb, 100 ppb, 1 ppm, 10 ppm, 100 ppm, and 1000 ppm, and the upper limit may be any of 1%, 1000 ppm, 100 ppm, 10 ppm, 1 ppm, 100 ppb, and 10 ppb, and the range may be any combination of these lower limit and upper limit values, and is preferably within the range of 1 ppm to 100 ppm, but is not limited thereto.

[0020] [Composition for food and drink additives containing vegetable oils and fats] In one aspect of the present invention, palmitoleic acid can be mixed with any component that can be added to foods and beverages to form a vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition containing palmitoleic acid, and in another aspect of the present invention, the present flavor improving agent can be mixed with any component that can be added to foods and beverages to form a vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition containing the present flavor improving agent (hereinafter, these may be collectively referred to as the present food and beverage additive composition).

[0021] The present food and beverage additive composition contains palmitoleic acid, and can be used to improve the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage by adding it to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. Therefore, the present food and beverage additive composition can be used as a flavor improving composition for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. In another aspect of the present invention, since the present flavor improver containing palmitoleic acid as an active ingredient can be used as a vegetable oil feel imparting agent as described above, the present vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition contains palmitoleic acid, and can be used as a vegetable oil feel imparting composition for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage.

[0022] The concentration of palmitoleic acid in the food and beverage additive composition of the present invention can be arbitrarily determined depending on the object to which the food and beverage additive composition of the present invention is to be added and the flavor characteristics of the composition. It is sufficient to set the concentration to an appropriate level so that the composition can be added at a concentration that exhibits the effect of improving the flavor of the vegetable oil-containing food and beverage (for example, the above-mentioned range of 1 ppb to 1%), and the concentration can be set to, for example, 10 ppm to 90%, more specifically, the lower limit of 10 ppm, 100 ppm, 1000 ppm, 1%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%. , 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, and the upper limit is 90%, 85%, 80%, 75%, 70%, 65%, 60%, 55%, 50%, 45%, 40%, 35%, 30%, 25%, 20%, 15%, 10%, 5%, 1%, 1000ppm, 100ppm, and the range can be any combination of these lower limit and upper limit values, but is not limited thereto. Preferably, the range is 1% to 60%, more preferably 5% to 55%, even more preferably 10 to 50%, and even more preferably 15 to 35%. Although it depends on the formulation of the present food and beverage additive composition, if the concentration of palmitoleic acid in the present food and beverage additive composition is 10 ppm to 90%, the flavor derived from palmitoleic acid is not excessively prominent, and the flavor improving effect on vegetable oil-containing food and beverages is easily obtained. However, depending on the present food and beverage additive composition and the flavor and other conditions of the food and beverage additive composition, palmitoleic acid may be contained at a concentration outside the range of 10 ppm to 90%.

[0023] Examples of the present food and beverage additive composition include flavoring compositions that can be added to various foods and beverages, various animal and plant extracts, or fermented, enzyme-treated, or heat-treated products of various animal and plant raw materials, and the forms of these include water-soluble or oil-soluble solvents, emulsion preparations, powder preparations, and other solid preparations (such as solid fats), but the present invention is not limited to the above examples.

[0024] Specific examples of optional other components that may be contained in the present food and beverage additive composition in addition to the present flavor improving agent include various types of fragrance compounds, fragrance compositions, colorants, vitamins, functional substances, fish meat extracts, livestock meat extracts, animal and plant extracts, animal and plant oils and fats, yeast extracts, animal and plant proteins, animal and plant protein hydrolysates, starch, dextrin, sugars, amino acids, nucleic acids, organic acids, solvents, emulsifiers, specific gravity adjusters, antioxidants, etc. For example, natural essential oils, natural flavors, and flavor compounds described in "Japan Patent Office Official Gazette, Collection of Well-Known and Commonly Used Technology (Flavors) Part II Food Flavors, published on January 14, 2000," "Survey on the Actual Use of Food Flavoring Compounds in Japan" (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Science Research Report for 2000, Japan Flavor and Fragrance Manufacturers Association, published in March 2001), and "Synthetic Flavors: Chemistry and Product Knowledge" (revised and expanded new edition published on December 20, 2016, edited by the Synthetic Flavor Editorial Committee, Chemical Daily Co., Ltd.) can be mentioned.

[0025] Other examples of fragrance compounds include hydrocarbon compounds such as monoterpenes, such as α-pinene, β-pinene, myrcene, camphene, and limonene, sesquiterpenes, such as valencene, cedrene, caryophyllene, and longifolene, and 1,3,5-undecatriene.

[0026] Examples of the alcohol compound include saturated or unsaturated alcohols such as butanol, pentanol, 3-octanol, hexanol, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, prenol, and 2,6-nonadienol; terpene alcohols such as linalool, geraniol, citronellol, tetrahydromyrcenol, farnesol, nerolidol, cedrol, and terpineol; and aromatic alcohols such as benzyl alcohol, phenylethyl alcohol, and cinnamyl alcohol.

[0027] Examples of the aldehyde compound include saturated or unsaturated aldehydes such as acetaldehyde, hexanal, octanal, decanal, (E)-2-hexenal, and 2,4-octadienal; terpene aldehydes such as citronellal, hydroxycitronellal, citral, myrtenal, and perillaldehyde; and aromatic aldehydes such as benzaldehyde, cinnamaldehyde, amylcinnamaldehyde, vanillin, ethyl vanillin, heliotropin, and p-tolylaldehyde.

[0028] Examples of the ketone compounds include saturated or unsaturated ketones such as 2-heptanone, 2-undecanone, 1-octen-3-one, and acetoin; diketones and hydroxyketones such as diacetyl, 2,3-pentanedione, maltol, ethyl maltol, cyclotene, and 2,5-dimethyl-4-hydroxy-3(2H)-furanone; terpene ketones such as carvone, menthone, and nootkatone; ketones derived from terpene degradation products such as α-ionone, β-ionone, and β-damascenone; and aromatic ketones such as raspberry ketone.

[0029] Examples of the furan or ether compounds include furfuryl alcohol, furfural, rose oxide, linalool oxide, menthofuran, theaspirane, estragole, eugenol, and 1,8-cineole.

[0030] Examples of the ester compound include aliphatic esters such as ethyl acetate, isoamyl acetate, ethyl butyrate, ethyl isobutyrate, isoamyl butyrate, ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, ethyl 3-methylbutyrate, 2-methylbutyl isobutyrate, ethyl hexanoate, allyl hexanoate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl caproate, isoamyl isovalerate, and ethyl nonanoate; terpene alcohol esters such as linalyl acetate, geranyl acetate, lavandulyl acetate, and terpenyl acetate; and aromatic esters such as benzyl acetate, benzyl butyrate, methyl salicylate, benzyl salicylate, methyl cinnamate, cinnamyl propionate, ethyl benzoate, cinnamyl isovalerate, and ethyl 3-methyl-2-phenylglycidate.

[0031] Examples of the lactone compound include saturated or unsaturated lactones such as γ-decalactone, γ-dodecalactone, δ-decalactone, δ-dodecalactone, 7-decen-4-olide, and 2-decen-5-olide.

[0032] The acid compounds include saturated or unsaturated fatty acids such as acetic acid, butyric acid, octanoic acid, isovaleric acid, caproic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and linolenic acid.

[0033] Examples of the nitrogen-containing compound include pyridine, alkyl-substituted pyrazine, methyl anthranilate, and trimethylpyrazine.

[0034] Examples of sulfur-containing compounds include methanethiol, dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide, allyl isothiocyanate, 3-methyl-2-butene-1-thiol, 3-methyl-2-butanethiol, 3-methyl-1-butanethiol, 2-methyl-1-butanethiol, and furfuryl mercaptan.

[0035] Natural essential oils include sweet orange, bitter orange, petitgrain, lemon, bergamot, mandarin, neroli, peppermint, spearmint, lavender, chamomile, rosemary, eucalyptus, sage, basil, rose, hyacinth, lilac, geranium, jasmine, ylang-ylang, anise, clove, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, cedar, cypress, vetiver, patchouli, labdanum, elderflower, and clary sage.

[0036] Examples of various animal and plant extracts include herb or spice extracts, various tea extracts such as coffee, green tea, black tea, or oolong tea, milk or dairy products, and various enzymatic decomposition products thereof using lipase and / or protease, etc.

[0037] Since palmitoleic acid, which is the active ingredient of the flavor improver contained in the food and beverage additive composition, is oil-soluble, as described in the section on the flavor improver, the flavor improver is contained in the food and beverage additive composition as an oil-in-water type emulsion preparation, or the food and beverage additive composition is made into an oil-in-water type emulsion preparation, so that the palmitoleic acid does not separate from the water even when added to various foods and beverages, and it can be used in a wide range of foods and beverages, and the flavor improving effect may last longer than a solution in which palmitoleic acid is simply dissolved in a solvent. A method for making the food and beverage additive composition into an emulsion preparation is exemplified in the section below [Method for producing a flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages].

[0038] [Method of producing flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing food and drink] In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for producing the present flavor improver (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the method for producing the present flavor improver), which comprises mixing palmitoleic acid with a solvent and other components that can be appropriately added to consumer goods. In the method for producing the present flavor improver, the method for obtaining palmitoleic acid is not particularly limited. For example, commercially available palmitoleic acid may be purchased, or palmitoleic acid may be obtained by liberating palmitoleic acid from a compound encapsulated in the molecule.

[0039] When palmitoleic acid is obtained by liberating palmitoleic acid from a compound contained within the molecule, for example, a method including the following steps 1 and 2 can be used. (Step 1) A step of preparing a composition containing a compound containing palmitoleic acid in its molecule (Step 2) A step of enzymatically treating the composition prepared in Step 1 to obtain an enzyme-treated product containing palmitoleic acid liberated from the compound. A representative example of this method is to prepare glycerides (triglycerides, 1,2- or 1,3-diglycerides, 1- or 2-monoglycerides) having a structure in which a carboxyl group of palmitoleic acid is ester-bonded to a hydroxyl group of glycerol as a compound containing palmitoleic acid in its molecule (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a palmitoleic acid-containing compound), and to liberate palmitoleic acid by hydrolysis of the ester bond using lipase as a catalyst. A specific example of the glycerides is a triglyceride in which at least one of three ester bonds is an ester bond with palmitoleic acid.

[0040] The composition containing the palmitoleic acid-containing compound is not particularly limited, and may be animal fat or vegetable fat. Examples include, but are not limited to, beef fat, lard, chicken fat, duck fat, whale fat, fish oil, cashew nut oil, hazelnut oil, pistachio oil, macadamia nut oil, avocado oil, almond oil, soybean oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, etc.

[0041] In the method for producing the flavor improver of the present invention, examples of compositions that can be added to various foods and beverages to which palmitoleic acid is added include compositions containing one or more selected from solvents, antioxidants, colorants, and other additives that can be added to foods and beverages. These may also be made into emulsion preparations, powder preparations, or other solid preparations (such as solid fats) to be used as the flavor improver of the present invention.

[0042] There is no particular limitation on the type of solvent used. Examples of water-soluble solvents include ethanol, methanol, acetone, tetrahydrofuran, acetonitrile, 2-propanol, methyl ethyl ketone, glycerin, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, hexyl glycol, benzyl benzoate, triethyl citrate, and diethyl phthalate. Among these, ethanol or propylene glycol is particularly preferred when used in food and beverages. Examples of oil-soluble solvents include vegetable oils and fats, animal oils and fats, refined oils and fats (e.g., processed oils and fats such as medium-chain fatty acid triglycerides, and short-chain fatty acid triglycerides such as triacetin and tripropionin), hercolin, various essential oils, and triethyl citrate.

[0043] In the method for producing the present flavor improver, in order to prepare an emulsified preparation of the present flavor improver, palmitoleic acid or a composition containing palmitoleic acid can be appropriately diluted with vegetable oil or fat, and further containing a specific gravity adjuster (such as sucrose acetate isobutyrate ester) and an oil-soluble antioxidant as necessary, and then emulsified with a water-soluble solvent and an emulsifier to obtain the above-mentioned preparation. The emulsification method is not particularly limited, and an emulsion with excellent stability can be obtained by emulsifying using various types of emulsifiers conventionally used in foods and beverages, such as fatty acid monoglycerides, fatty acid diglycerides, fatty acid triglycerides, propylene glycol fatty acid esters, sucrose fatty acid esters, polyglycerol fatty acid esters, lecithin, modified starch, sorbitan fatty acid esters, quillaja extract, gum arabic, tragacanth gum, guar gum, karaya gum, xanthan gum, pectin, alginic acid and its salts, carrageenan, gelatin, casein, quillaja saponin, sodium caseinate, etc., using a homomixer, colloid mill, rotating disk homogenizer, high-pressure homogenizer, etc. The amount of these emulsifiers used is not strictly limited and can vary over a wide range depending on the type of emulsifier used, but is usually within the range of about 0.01 to about 100 parts by mass, preferably about 0.1 to about 50 parts by mass, per part by mass of palmitoleic acid. In order to stabilize the emulsion, the water-soluble solvent may contain, in addition to water, one or a mixture of two or more polyhydric alcohols such as glycerin, propylene glycol, sorbitol, maltitol, sucrose, glucose, trehalose, sugar solution, and reduced starch syrup.

[0044] The emulsion thus obtained can be dried to produce a powder formulation, if desired. When producing the powder, sugars such as gum arabic, trehalose, dextrin, sugar, lactose, glucose, starch syrup, and reduced starch syrup can be added as needed. The amount of these to be used can be appropriately selected depending on the desired properties of the powder formulation.

[0045] Furthermore, as another aspect of the present invention, the present flavor improving agent can be added to another flavor imparting agent to produce the flavor imparting agent to be added as a flavor improving agent for another vegetable oil-containing food or drink. The present flavor improving agent produced in this manner can also be used in the production of various foods and drinks as an additive composition for various foods and drinks, as described above.

[0046] [Methods for improving the flavor of foods and beverages containing vegetable oils and fats / production methods] In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or drink to which palmitoleic acid itself, the flavor improver, or the food or drink additive composition is added to various vegetable oil-containing foods or drinks (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the flavor improving method). The flavor improving method can produce a vegetable oil-containing food or drink with improved flavor by adding palmitoleic acid, the flavor improver, or the food or drink additive composition, and can therefore also be called a manufacturing method for a vegetable oil-containing food or drink (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the manufacturing method for the food or drink). The flavor improving method and the manufacturing method for the food or drink can make the vegetable oil-containing food or drink have an excellent flavor, and preferably can make the vegetable oil-containing food or drink rich in vegetable oil feeling.

[0047] The timing of adding palmitoleic acid, the present flavor improving agent, or the present food and beverage additive composition to various vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages is arbitrary, and they may be added to various vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages together with one or more other flavoring agents (e.g., one or more selected from a water-soluble flavoring composition, an emulsified flavoring composition, any flavoring compound, and a natural essential oil (e.g., the flavoring compounds described in the above-mentioned "Japan Patent Office Gazette, Collection of Well-Known and Commonly Used Technology (Flavors) Part II Food Flavors," "Survey on the Actual Use of Food Flavoring Compounds in Japan," and "Synthetic Flavorings: Chemistry and Product Knowledge").

[0048] There are no particular limitations on the foods and beverages to which palmitoleic acid, the present flavor improving agent, or the present food and beverage additive composition can be added, and the foods and beverages may have any flavor (also referred to as taste), but preferred examples include those containing vegetable oils and foods and beverages that have a preferred flavor due to the inclusion of vegetable oils and fats. Particularly preferred specific examples include bread, shortening, margarine, fat spreads, dressings, mayonnaise, whipped cream, chocolate, corn flakes, fried foods (tempura, fries, deep-fried chicken, croquettes, minced meat cutlets, donuts, churros, These include, but are not limited to, baked goods (such as karinto and fried rice cakes), stir-fried dishes (prepared dishes and fried rice), plant-based meat (such as soy meat), coffee, plant-based milk (such as soy milk, oat milk, rice milk, almond milk), frozen desserts (such as ice milk and lacto ice cream), snacks, instant ramen, cakes, puddings, baked goods (such as biscuits, pies, pretzels, rusks, shortbread), candy (such as caramel and chewing candy), cream puff dough, pie dough, coffee whitener, etc.

[0049] The concentration of palmitoleic acid, the present flavor improving agent, or the present food and beverage additive composition added to a food or beverage can be arbitrarily determined depending on the desired flavor improving effect, but as described above, the inventors have at least confirmed that the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage can be improved by adding palmitoleic acid so that the concentration is within the range of 1 ppb to 1% of the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage. Therefore, in one aspect of the present invention, palmitoleic acid, the present flavor improving agent, or the present food and beverage additive composition may be added to a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage so that the concentration of palmitoleic acid is 1 ppb to 1%. More specifically, the lower limit can be any of 1 ppb, 10 ppb, 100 ppb, 1 ppm, 10 ppm, 100 ppm, and 1000 ppm, and the upper limit can be any of 1%, 1000 ppm, 100 ppm, 10 ppm, 1 ppm, 100 ppb, and 10 ppb, and can be within a range determined by any combination of these lower and upper limits. From the standpoint of fully exerting the flavor improving effect and the amount to be added to vegetable oil-containing food and beverages (the production costs of the food and beverages), the range is preferably 1 ppm to 100 ppm, but is not limited to this. EXAMPLES

[0050] The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples, although the present invention is not limited to these.

[0051] [Example 1] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 1 Commercially available palmitoleic acid (purity 98%) was prepared and designated as Invention Product 1 (one embodiment of the present flavor improving agent). Meanwhile, as a comparative example, commercially available oleic acid (purity 98%, Comparative Product 1) was prepared.

[0052] In addition, commercially available rice oil, soybean oil, and sunflower oil were prepared and designated as base rice oil, base soybean oil, and base sunflower oil, respectively. In the present examples, the base rice oil, base soybean oil, and base sunflower oil may be referred to as base products.

[0053] Then, 30% of commercially available rice oil, 69% of propylene glycol, and 1.0% of glycerin fatty acid ester were mixed to obtain diluted rice oil. Similarly, 30% of commercially available soybean oil, 69% of propylene glycol, and 1.0% of glycerin fatty acid ester were mixed to obtain diluted soybean oil, and 30% of commercially available sunflower oil, 69% of propylene glycol, and 1.0% of glycerin fatty acid ester were mixed to obtain diluted sunflower oil. In this embodiment, diluted rice oil, diluted soybean oil, and diluted sunflower oil may be referred to as diluted products.

[0054] Next, the present invention product 1 was added to the diluted rice oil at 1 ppb, 1 ppm, 100 ppm, and 1% to prepare vegetable oil compositions (the present invention products 1-1 to 1-4). Also, the comparative product 1 was added to the diluted rice oil at 1 ppm to prepare a vegetable oil composition (comparative product 1-1).

[0055] In addition, the present invention product 1 was added to the diluted soybean oil at 1 ppb, 1 ppm, 100 ppm, and 1% to prepare vegetable oil compositions (the present invention products 1-5 to 1-8). In addition, the comparative product 1 was added to the diluted soybean oil at 1 ppm to prepare vegetable oil compositions (the comparative product 1-2).

[0056] In addition, the present invention product 1 was added to the diluted sunflower oil at 1 ppb, 1 ppm, 100 ppm, and 1% to prepare vegetable oil compositions (the present invention products 1-9 to 1-12). In addition, the comparative product 1 was added to the diluted sunflower oil at 1 ppm to prepare vegetable oil compositions (the comparative product 1-3).

[0057] Then, sensory evaluation was performed on the products of the present invention 1-1 to 1-12 and the comparative products 1-1 to 1-3. The sensory evaluation was performed by 10 well-trained panelists with more than 10 years of experience, who scored the various vegetable oil compositions according to the following evaluation criteria, with 4 points for vegetable oil feel equivalent to the base product (commercially available base rice oil, base soybean oil, and base sunflower oil without the addition of the product of the present invention) and 1 point for vegetable oil feel equivalent to the diluted product, and commented on the flavor felt. In the evaluation criteria, the vegetable oil feel means a rice oil-like flavor when the control product is rice oil, a soybean oil-like flavor when the control product is soybean oil, and a sunflower oil-like flavor when the control product is sunflower oil. (Evaluation Criteria 1) Same vegetable oily feel as the basic product: 4 It has a clearer vegetable oil feel than the diluted product, but is inferior to the basic product: 3 Slightly stronger vegetable oil feel than diluted product: 2 Same vegetable oil feel as diluted product: 1 (Evaluation Criteria 2) Noticeably stronger and fuller-bodied than diluted version: 4 It has a more rich taste than the diluted version: 3 Slightly more full-bodied than the diluted version: 2 Same richness as diluted product: 1 Tables 1 to 3 show the average scores and representative comments of the 10 panelists.

[0058] [Table 1]

[0059] [Table 2]

[0060] [Table 3]

[0061] As shown in Tables 1 to 3, the flavor improving agent of the present invention can impart a vegetable oil-like flavor and richness to various vegetable oils.

[0062] [Example 2] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 2 A commercially available onion-flavored dressing was prepared using soybean oil and rapeseed oil and labeled "oil 50% reduced." Invention product 1 (palmitoleic acid with a purity of 98%) was added to the dressing at the following concentrations of 1 ppb, 1 ppm, and 100 ppm to prepare foods and beverages according to one embodiment of the present invention (Invention products 2-1 to 2-4). Comparative product 1 (oleic acid with a purity of 98%) was also added to the commercially available onion-flavored dressing at 10 ppm to prepare a vegetable oil composition (Comparative product 1-3).

[0063] Then, the present invention products 2-1 to 2-4 and the comparative product 2-1 were subjected to a sensory evaluation by 10 well-trained panelists with 10 years or more of experience. In the sensory evaluation, the panelists were asked to comment on the flavor of the present invention products 2-1 to 2-4 and the comparative product 2-1 in comparison with a commercially available onion-flavored dressing as a control product. The comments obtained are shown in Table 4.

[0064] [Table 4]

[0065] [Example 3] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 3 A commercially available palmitoleic acid (purity 98%) 30% MCT oil (medium chain fatty acid oil, consisting of medium chain fatty acids in palm plants) solution was prepared (Product of the present invention 3-1) and placed in an oil spray bottle (one push will spray about 0.5 mL). In addition, a commercially available oleic acid (purity 98%) 30% MCT oil was placed in the same oil spray bottle as Product of the present invention 3-1 to serve as a comparison product (Comparative product 3-1). Furthermore, MCT oil was placed in the same oil spray bottle as Product of the present invention 3-1 and Comparative product 3-2 to serve as a control product (Comparative product 3-1).

[0066] Additionally, shiitake mushrooms (approximately 15 g) coated with tempura flour were prepared in the usual manner.

[0067] Next, the shiitake mushrooms coated with the tempura flour were sprayed three times with each of Product 3-1 of the present invention, Comparison Product 3-1, and Control Product 3 using an oil spray bottle, and then heated in a non-frying oven to obtain tempura with added MCT oil containing palmitoleic acid (Product 3-2 of the present invention, palmitoleic acid added at approximately 10 ppm), tempura with added MCT oil containing oleic acid (Comparative Product 3-2, oleic acid added at approximately 10 ppm), and tempura with added MCT oil (Control Product 3-2).

[0068] Then, a sensory evaluation was carried out on the invention product 3-2 and the comparative product 3 by five well-trained panelists with more than 10 years of experience. The sensory evaluation involved the panelists commenting on the flavor of the invention product 3-2 and the comparative product 3-2 compared to the tempura made from the control product 3-2. As a result, all five panelists answered that the addition of palmitoleic acid in the invention product 3-2 gave the batter part of the tempura made from the control product 3-2 a smooth, smooth and juicy oily texture, providing a rich and satisfying taste, while on the other hand, they answered that there was almost no difference between the comparative product 3-2 and the control product 3-2.

[0069] [Example 4] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 4 A commercially available dark chocolate with 60% cacao (containing cacao fat and oil) was melted in a hot water bath. This was used as a base chocolate. Next, the commercially available palmitoleic acid (purity 98%) and the commercially available MCT oil prepared in Example 1 were added to the base chocolate so that the palmitoleic acid concentration was 10 ppm, thereby obtaining a chocolate with palmitoleic acid added (Product 4 of the present invention) and a chocolate with MCT oil added (Comparative Product 4).

[0070] Then, a sensory evaluation was carried out on Invention Product 4 and Comparative Product 4 by five well-trained panelists with 10 years or more of experience. In the sensory evaluation, the panelists were asked to comment on the flavor of Invention Product 4 and Comparative Product 4 in comparison with the basic chocolate, which was used as a control. As a result, all five panelists answered that Invention Product 4 had an enhanced oily and fatty feel and rich chocolate with a rich, satisfying flavor, a moist melt-in-the-mouth texture, and an enhanced mellow flavor unique to cacao due to the addition of palmitoleic acid, and that Invention Product 4 was superior to Comparative Product 4 in terms of chocolate flavor unity, satisfaction, and aftertaste.

[0071] [Example 5] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 5 Commercially available soy milk (containing soybean oil and fat) was prepared. This was used as base soy milk. Next, the commercially available palmitoleic acid (purity 98%) and commercially available MCT oil prepared in Example 1 were added to the base soy milk so that the palmitoleic acid concentration was 1 ppm, thereby obtaining soy milk with added palmitoleic acid (Product 5 of the present invention) and soy milk with added MCT oil (Comparative Product 5).

[0072] Then, a sensory evaluation was carried out on Invention Product 5 and Comparative Product 5 by five well-trained panelists with 10 years or more of experience. In the sensory evaluation, basic soy milk was used as a control product, and the panelists were asked to comment on the flavor of Invention Product 5 and Comparative Product 5 compared to the control product. As a result, all five panelists answered that the addition of palmitoleic acid enhanced the rich, satisfying flavor, oil-like creaminess, sweetness, and smoothness of the soy milk, and that Invention Product 5 was superior to Comparative Product 5 in terms of unity of soy flavor, satisfaction, and aftertaste.

[0073] [Example 6] Effect of improving the flavor of food and drink containing vegetable oil 6 A coconut-like fragrance composition was prepared according to the recipe in Table 5 below. This is referred to as control product 6-1. Then, the commercially available palmitoleic acid (purity 98%) prepared in Example 1 was added to control product 6-1 so that the palmitoleic acid concentration was 100 ppm and 2000 ppm, to prepare two types of coconut-like fragrance compositions according to one embodiment of the present invention (referred to as present invention product 6-1 and present invention product 6-2, respectively). In addition, the commercially available oleic acid (purity 98%) prepared in Example 1 was added to control product 6-1 so that the oleic acid concentration was 100 ppm, to prepare a comparative coconut-like fragrance composition (comparative product 6-1).

[0074] [Table 5]

[0075] Next, the present invention products 6-1 and 6-2, the comparative product 6-1, and the control product 6-1 were each added to commercially available coconut milk at a concentration of 0.1% relative to the total amount of coconut milk to obtain beverages according to one embodiment of the present invention (the present invention products 6-3 and 6-4), a comparative example beverage (comparative product 6-2), and a control product beverage (control product 6-2). The concentrations of the added components (fatty acids) in each of the beverages of the present invention and the comparative example are as shown in Table 6.

[0076] [Table 6]

[0077] Then, the present invention products 6-3 and 6-4, the comparative product 6-2, and the control product 6-2 were subjected to a sensory evaluation by five well-trained panelists with more than 10 years of experience. The sensory evaluation involved the panelists commenting on the flavor of each of the present invention products 6-3, 6-4, and the comparative product 6-2 compared to the beverage of the control product 6-2. As a result, all five panelists answered that the addition of palmitoleic acid in the present invention products 6-3 and 6-4 enhanced the mellow oil-like richness and sweetness of the control product 6-2, giving a cohesive flavor and a rich, satisfying taste, while the comparative product 6-2 was almost no different from the control product 6-2.

[0078] [Summary of the Examples] As illustrated in the above examples, by adding a small amount of the active ingredient palmitoleic acid to food and beverages containing vegetable oil, the flavor of the food and beverages can be improved, and particularly preferably, the sensation of having used more vegetable oil than actually has been achieved, resulting in the excellent effect of producing satisfying food and beverages even when only a small amount of vegetable oil is used.

Claims

1. A flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages, comprising palmitoleic acid as an active ingredient.

2. A composition for use as an additive to vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages, comprising the flavor improver for vegetable oil-containing foods and beverages according to claim 1.

3. A vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition comprising palmitoleic acid.

4. The vegetable oil-containing food and beverage additive composition according to claim 2 or 3, which is used for improving the flavor of vegetable oil-containing food and beverage.

5. A method for improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, a flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in claim 1, or a composition for adding a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in claim 2 or 3 to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage.

6. 6. A method for improving the flavor of a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 5, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, the flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 1, or the composition for adding a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 2 or 3 to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage so that the concentration of palmitoleic acid is 1 ppb to 1% based on the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage.

7. A method for producing a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, a flavor improver for a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in claim 1, or a composition for adding a vegetable oil-containing food or beverage described in claim 2 or 3 to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage.

8. 8. A method for producing the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 7, comprising adding palmitoleic acid, the flavor improver for the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 1, or the composition for adding to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage according to claim 2 or 3 to the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage so that the concentration of palmitoleic acid is 1 ppb to 1% based on the total mass of the vegetable oil-containing food or beverage.

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