Spinach Enzymatic Hydrolysate for Sodium Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need in the food industry to enhance the salty taste of food products without increasing sodium chloride content, as high sodium intake is detrimental to health, and alternatives like potassium chloride can introduce undesirable tastes and health concerns.
Innovation Solution
An enzymatic process is developed to create a salt-enhancing ingredient from spinach, involving the formation of a hydrolysate using proteolytic enzymes like proteinase, peptidase, and glutaminase, which can be further enhanced with carbohydrase enzymes and fermentation by Lactobacillus bacteria, resulting in a concentrated ingredient that intensifies the perception of salty taste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If sodium chloride content is reduced to improve health, then health benefits are improved, but salty taste intensity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces spinach-derived peptides and amino acids as intermediary substances that mediate between reduced sodium chloride and enhanced salty taste. These hydrolysis products act as taste modifiers that amplify the perception of saltiness without requiring additional sodium, thereby resolving the contradiction between health benefits and taste intensity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the food matrix by introducing specific peptides and amino acids from spinach hydrolysis. These parameter changes in composition (adding umami compounds, free amino acids) fundamentally alter the taste profile to compensate for reduced sodium chloride while maintaining health benefits
2Quantity of substance
If potassium chloride is used to replace sodium chloride to reduce sodium content, then sodium content is reduced, but taste quality deteriorates due to bitter and metallic off-tastes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the potentially harmful off-tastes associated with salt reduction into a benefit by using spinach hydrolysis products. These products actively mask and suppress the bitter and metallic off-tastes that would otherwise be generated, transforming the harmful taste effect into a beneficial taste enhancement that allows for sodium reduction without quality loss
3Quantity of substance
If enzymatic hydrolysis is applied to spinach to create salt-enhancing ingredient, then salt-enhancing capability is improved, but process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs self-service by utilizing naturally occurring enzymes within the spinach plant itself to perform the hydrolysis. The spinach material essentially processes itself, converting its own proteins into the desired peptides and amino acids through endogenous enzymatic activity, thereby reducing the need for complex external enzymatic treatment systems
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The process effectively enhances the salty taste of food products, allowing for reduced sodium chloride content while avoiding off-tastes, even at higher concentrations, and can be used in conjunction with potassium chloride, providing a healthier alternative.
Implementation Method 1
forming a hydrolysate of spinach plant material by subjecting it to an enzymatic hydrolysis using one or more proteolytic enzymes
Implementation Method 2
the hydrolysate is subjected to fermentation using a Lactobacillus
Implementation Method 3
the formed salt-enhancing ingredient is inactivated by heating
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an enzymatic process that hydrolyzes spinach plant material to form a salt-enhancing ingredient, the formed salt-enhancing ingredient, food products comprising said salt-enhancing ingredient and a method of enhancing the salty taste of food products.