Mouthfeel or texture plays a vital role in the way we taste and experience the joy of food. This physical sensation in the mouth comes from feeling the texture and physical structure of food, such as soft or hard, smooth or rough, crunchy or chewy. Together with taste and smell, it determines the overall flavor of the food we consume.
Emulsifiers play a significant role when it comes to enhancing or even modifying the texture of food. An emulsifier does this by helping oil blend with water into stable emulsions, overcoming their natural tendency to separate. The molecules of emulsifiers have a hydrophilic end (water-loving) and a lipophilic end (oil-loving). The hydrophilic end is attracted to water, while the lipophilic end is attracted to oil. In this way, water and oil are finely dispersed to create a stable, homogenous, and smooth emulsion. By improving the interaction between two or more ingredients and reducing moisture loss, emulsifiers also help maintain the end product’s quality, texture, and shelf life. In addition to extending the microbial shelf-life, our solutions extend food products’ physical properties, constituting an aspect of shelf-life. In cakes, emulsifiers increase batter stability and aeration and give it a moist and soft texture, and at the same time increase shelf life. Our research and development laboratory in Singapore, the Novel IDEAS Center, has shown that the batter stability improved by more than 100% for pound cake, and texture improved by almost double. In bakery applications, emulsifiers contribute well to sensory and mouthfeel innovations through:
- Improving dough/ batter stability during processing
- Ensuring uniform aeration and water retention during the mixing and baking process
- Providing stability and uniformity to batter
- Strengthening the gluten-starch network to improve dough stability/strength during proofing
- Increasing the volume, external symmetry, and better internal crumb structure
- Improving tolerance leading to less yield loss
- Supporting water and fat complex with starch to increase loaf volume and machineability
| Pound Cake | Sample | EF 2001 |
| Batter stability | 3 | 8 |
| Texture | 5 | 9 |
| Eating Overall | 6 | 9 |
| Bite | 5 | 8 |
| Smooth in mouth | 5 | 9 |
| Softness | 5 | 8 |
| Taste | 6 | 7 |
In breads and buns, emulsifiers can provide springiness or spongy texture and mouthfeel. This is important for consumers who want to eat their bread slice straight from the package with a growing grab-and-go culture. Our team has analyzed the effect of emulsifiers on white bread texture. It was found that the hardness of the final product for white bread without emulsifiers was about 25% harder than white bread with our emulsifier, Masemul EB 1001.
| Bread Day 1 | Bread Day 5 | ||||
| Sample | EB 1001 | Sample | EB 1001 | ||
| Eating | 6 | 8 | Eating | 5 | 8 |
| Texture overall | 5 | 8 | Texture overall | 4 | 7 |
| Softness | 5 | 9 | Softness | 5 | 8 |
| Springiness | 6 | 9 | Springiness | 5 | 8 |
Pizza bases blended with our emulsifier, Masemul EB 1003 have their texture and mouthfeel properties tweaked for the following applications:
- Pan-fried
- Deep dish
- Hand-tossed and/or dough ball
This is a demonstration of the versatility of emulsifiers. By adding our blends, one can improve the eating parameters and mouthfeel; and give pizza bases a crunchy, crispy, or soft and chewy bite. Emulsifiers in chocolates improve the flow of the mixture. It acts as a lubricant and smoothens the friction between the different ingredients such as cacao, sugar, and milk, giving the product a smooth mouthfeel. Similarly, it creates a melt in the mouth and crunchy texture for cookies; or a soft and chewy mouthfeel for donuts. Emulsifiers are used in various food applications, including bakery, confectionery, margarine, frozen desserts, and dairy. Our emulsifiers comply with European Union (EU) and The United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) requirements, and they are Kosher for Pareve, Halal, Project Verified Non-GMO, and Non-Allergenic. Customer satisfaction is essential for food producers. Our customized blends help you create great-tasting products to meet the needs of your consumers. Our research and development team also provides tailor-make customer-specific combinations for the unique requirements of your product. To partner with us, start a conversation with our experts today.
