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Title: A SOLUBLE FIBER GEL PRODUCED FROM RICE BRAN AND BARLEY FLOUR AS A FAT REPLACER IN ASIAN FOODS

Author
item Inglett, George
item Carriere, Craig
item MANEEPUN, S - KASETSART UNIV, BANGKOK
item TUNGTRAKUL, P - KASETSART UNIV, BANGKOK

Submitted to: International Journal of Food Science and Technology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/5/2003
Publication Date: 2/1/2004
Citation: Inglett, G.E., Carriere, C.J., Maneepun, S., Tungtrakul, P. 2004. A soluble fiber gel produced from rice bran and barley flour as a fat replacer in asian foods. International Journal of Food Science and Technology. 39:1-10.

Interpretive Summary: With the current depressed prices for farm commodities, new value-added markets for agricultural products need to be developed. A new food ingredient called Ricetrim was developed from barley and rice products. Ricetrim may be used as a fat substitute in foods; in addition, Ricetrim also delivers soluble dietary fibers, which are known to lower blood cholesterol levels. A study was conducted using Ricetrim to substitute for saturated fats in several different Asian dishes. The results of the study indicated that Ricetrim could be used to produce Asian dishes such as soymilk and tofu, with acceptable taste and texture while lowering the fat content of the foods. This new product, Ricetrim, has the potential to open export markets and new applications for soybean and oat products, particularly in the area of heart-healthy Asian foods.

Technical Abstract: A hydrocolloidal fiber composite from rice bran and barley flour, called Ricetrim, was found to have similar rheological properties to coconut cream. Coconut cream displayed a very narrow region of linear viscoelastic behavior, below strains of 0.1% and, above this strain value, dropped sharply with increasing strain indicating nonlinear viscoelastic behavior. The region of linear viscoelastic behavior for Ricetrim extended to strains of 10%. Increasing the strain above 10% caused a less drastic decrease in the oscillatory shear modulus for the Ricetrim suspension than was observed for the coconut cream sample. When Ricetrim was substituted for coconut cream in Thai foods, it was found to produce acceptable products with lower saturated fat contents. Cookies, pumpkin pudding, layer cake, dip for pot crust, taro custard, and saute chicken curry were produced with fat contents reduced by 47.8, 94.3, 59.8, 75.3, 61.3 and 60.6%, respectively. Some differences in flavor and texture were observed at the higher levels of substitution, but these differences appeared to represent small changes in the overall score of general acceptability, or suitability, of the fiber gel foods. Scanning electron micrographs of the cookie and pumpkin pudding revealed only small changes in their surfaces with Ricetrim even at higher levels of substitution.