Combination of Milk Polar Lipids and Casein Hydrolysate as a Healthy Emulsifier for Ice Cream

• Published in: Food science of animal resources Vol. 44; no. 6; pp. 1389 - 1402
• Main Authors: Ji-Hwa Park, Yu Bin Lee, Sung Ho Lee, Eunkyung Ko, Jee-Young Imm
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Korean
• Published: 2024
• Subjects: ice cream; casein hydrolysate; milk polar lipid; emulsifier; protein displacement
• ISSN: 2636-0772; 2636-0780

The demand for healthy ingredients in food products including ice cream, is continuously increasing. The potential of a combination of milk polar lipids (MPL) and casein hydrolysate (CH) to replace synthetic emulsifiers such as diacetyl tartaric acid esters of monoglycerides (DATEM), in ice cream production was investigated. Changes in particle size, emulsion stability, and interfacial tension of model emulsions (milk protein, casein:whey=8:2, w/v) were analyzed after the addition of MPL, CH, and their combination (MPL+CH). The use of MPL+CH reduced interfacial tension and increased αs- and β-casein displacement from the surface of cream layers compared to the addition of MPL alone. The addition of MPL+CH improved ice cream overrun to levels comparable to those of control ice cream containing DATEM (0.3%, w/v), without adversely affecting melt rate or microstructure. Confocal laser scanning microscopy revealed that ice cream prepared with MPL+CH formed a thick protein and coalesced fat layer on the surface of air cells that might help enhance overrun. These findings suggest that the combination of MPL (0.3%, w/v) and CH (0.03%, w/v) can be used as a potential emulsifier alternative to replace chemically synthesized emulsifiers such as DATEM.