Compression resistance, sweetener's diffusion and sweetness of hydrocolloids gels

The effects of the type and concentration of two hydrocolloids-kappa-carrageenan and gellan gum-and of the type and concentration of two sweeteners-sucrose and aspartame-on the gel resistance to compression, on the sweetener diffusion and on the intensity of the gel sweetness and the relationships between the gel physical properties and their perceived sweetness were studied. The gels true rupture stress increased with hydrocolloid concentration, this increase being higher for gellan gels. Gellan gels showed lower true rupture strain values, which in contrast with carrageenan gels, decreased on increasing hydrocolloid concentration. The addition of sucrose produced a bigger increase in gel strength at the higher hydrocolloid concentration. The main effect detected on the sweeteners' diffusion constant was the higher value observed in low concentration (3 g L-1) kappa-carrageenan gels. Gellan gels were perceived as sweeter than kappa-carrageenan gels. The decrease in sweetness due to an increase in hydrocolloid concentration was greater in gellan than in carrageenan gels. Variations in sweetener concentration, true rupture strain, and deformability modulus values explained 93% of the variability in sweetness for gels with sucrose and 94% for gels with aspartame. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.