Silva Pedro M, Martins Artur J, Fasolin Luiz H, Vicente António A
Centre of Biological Engineering, Campus de Gualtar, University of Minho, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal.
International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Food Processing and Nutrition Group, Av. Mestre José Veiga s/n, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal.
Gels. 2021 Jan 28;7(1):12. doi: 10.3390/gels7010012.
Olive oil has recognized health benefits but lacks structural resilience to act in a similar fashion as do the typically used triglycerides (TAGs) when applied in food manufacturing. Therefore, olive oil structuring is critical to widening its use as a healthier alternative in spreadable products. Foreseeing the development of an application for the food industry, three types of natural waxes were used as organogelators, generating olive oil organogels with distinct properties. Retail-simulated storage conditions were used to mimic real-life industrial and commercial use. Organogel systems were evaluated according to their oxidation stability and textural and rheological properties. Textural and rheological parameters increased in response to increasing gelator concentration, while oxidation values (below 1.5 meq O·kg) remained within legal limits. Organogels displayed similar textural properties to those of commercially available spreadable products, while displaying a low critical gelation concentration. In short, it was shown that tailoring the physicochemical properties of organogels towards specific applications is possible. The produced organogels showed similar properties to the ones of commercially available spreadable products, revealing favourable oxidative profiles. Therefore, an industrial application can be easily foreseen, building on the natural characteristics of olive oil as a healthier alternative to current spreadable products.
橄榄油具有公认的健康益处，但在食品制造中应用时，缺乏结构弹性，无法像典型使用的甘油三酯（TAGs）那样发挥类似作用。因此，橄榄油结构化对于扩大其作为可涂抹产品中更健康替代品的用途至关重要。预见到食品工业应用的发展，三种天然蜡被用作有机凝胶剂，生成了具有不同特性的橄榄油有机凝胶。采用模拟零售的储存条件来模拟实际的工业和商业用途。根据有机凝胶体系的氧化稳定性以及质地和流变学特性对其进行评估。质地和流变学参数随凝胶剂浓度的增加而增加，而氧化值（低于1.5 meq O·kg）仍在法定限值内。有机凝胶表现出与市售可涂抹产品相似的质地特性，同时显示出较低的临界凝胶化浓度。简而言之，研究表明针对特定应用定制有机凝胶的物理化学性质是可行的。所制备的有机凝胶表现出与市售可涂抹产品相似的特性，具有良好的氧化特性。因此，基于橄榄油作为当前可涂抹产品更健康替代品的天然特性，很容易预见到其工业应用前景。
