Steamed Cake Donut Fat Reduction via Steam Cooking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for producing donuts result in high-fat content due to frying, and attempts to bake donuts often fail to replicate the texture and taste of fried donuts, especially in achieving a short bite and soft texture.
Innovation Solution
A steamed cake donut with a total fat content between 7% and 18% is developed using a dry mix comprising wheat flour, a chemical leavening system, sugar, egg yolk, emulsifiers, and enzymes, which is steamed to maintain organoleptic and textural characteristics similar to fried donuts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If donuts are fried in hot oil to achieve characteristic short bite and soft texture, then the textural characteristics are improved, but the fat content increases significantly (25-30% fat with 80-85% being absorbed frying fat)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the cooking method from frying to steaming, fundamentally altering the thermal processing parameters. This substitution eliminates fat absorption while maintaining textural quality through controlled steam heating at 100°C, achieving the desired contradiction resolution between low fat content and acceptable texture
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a specialized batter composition as an intermediary medium that enables steaming to produce fried-like textures. The batter contains specific ingredients (eggs, sugar, flour, leavening agents, emulsifiers) that create a matrix capable of developing short bite and softness through steam cooking rather than direct oil contact
2Quantity of substance
If donuts are baked in an oven to reduce fat content, then the fat content is reduced, but the texture becomes dry and bread-like, losing the characteristic softness of fried donuts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a specially formulated batter as an intermediary that responds differently to steaming versus baking. The batter's composition (eggs, sugar, leavening agents, emulsifiers) creates a matrix that develops soft, moist texture when steamed but becomes dry and bread-like when baked, thus the intermediary enables differentiation of textural outcomes based on cooking method
Solution Approach 2:
The patent exploits the phase transition of water to steam as the cooking mechanism. Steaming provides continuous moisture supply through condensation on the donut surface, preventing drying while baking exposes the donut to dry hot air that removes moisture. This phase transition-based cooking method maintains fat reduction while preserving soft texture
3Quantity of substance
If a thermally-reversible gel is added to cake donut batter to reduce fat, then the fat content is reduced, but the organoleptic characteristics and textural quality deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex fat-reduction additives (thermally-reversible gels) with a simple, traditional batter composition using common ingredients (eggs, sugar, flour, leavening agents). This approach achieves fat reduction without relying on specialized additives that compromise organoleptic quality, effectively discarding the problematic gel approach in favor of a simpler, more effective solution
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental cooking parameter from frying or baking to steaming, which eliminates the need for thermally-reversible gels. The steaming process inherently provides fat reduction while the batter composition and cooking conditions (steam temperature, cooking time) are optimized to maintain organoleptic characteristics without requiring gel additives
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a steamed cake donut with a total fat content comprised between 7% and 18%, in particular comprised between 7% and 15%, more in particular comprised between 7% and 12%. The present invention further relates to methods and means (e.g. dry mix, batter) for preparing such donut. A donut of the invention can be stored in frozen state prior to or after steaming.