Gelled vegetable desserts containing pea protein, k-carrageenan and starch

• Author(s): Sousa, Isabel ; Nunes, M.C. ; Raymundo, Anabela
• Date: 2006
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/2421
• Origin: Repositório da UTL
• Subject(s): pea protein; k-carrageenan; starch; mixed gel; rheology; texture; confocal laser scanning microscopy
• Document Type: Article
• Language: English

Description

Due to recent animal diseases, cholesterol in take worries and strong demand for healthy food, there is a greater pressure for the direct consumption of vegetable proteins in food products. In this work, the objective is to develop alternative of strictly vegetable origin desserts based on gelled systems with required physical structure and perceived texture. For this reason, it is important to control the properties of the biopolymer mixtures and understand the phase separation behaviour un- der different physicochemical conditions. The firmness and storage modulus of different formulations of pea protein/k-carrageenan/starch systems processed and cooled at different conditions are compared with those parameters obtained for commercial products. Formulation and thermal conditions were determined to influence the texture and storage modulus of the mixed systems. Confocal microscopic images showed that phase separation between pea protein and k-carrageenan takes place, leading to the formation of two network systems. The binding of water effect, of the starch swollen granules, promotes the concentration of pea protein and k-carrageenan, reinforcing the gel structure.