Food Composition and

Chemistry
Flavour
Flavour
• Flavour is the most important attribute of food. It is detected by our
senses of taste and odour.
• It is produced by aromatic chemicals that stimulate the senses of
odour and taste.
• There are four basic tastes — sweet, bitter, salty, and sour. All other
tastes are permutations and combinations of these four taste
sensations.
• Taste is detected by the 10,000 taste buds located mainly on the
tongue while odour is detected by extremely sensitive 10 million cells
situated in the upper portion of the nasal cavity.
Sweetness and saltiness are detected by taste
buds on the tip of the tongue, sourness on the
sides of the tongue, and bitterness at the back
of the tongue.

The level at which a taste can be identified is

called the threshold level.
DEFINITIONS
• Flavouring It is a substance which can impart flavour and is generally
used to impart taste or odour or both to a food.
• Aroma It refers to a pleasant often spicy odour, fragrance, or smell.
• Flavour It is a blend of taste and odour perceptions experienced when
food is in the mouth.
• Aftertaste It is the flavour that lingers in the mouth after food has
been swallowed.
• Flavour intensifier It is a compound that enhances the flavour of other
foods without contributing any flavour of its own.
Classification of food flavors
• Food flavours are broadly classified as natural food flavours, processed
flavours, and added flavours which may be natural extracted flavours or
synthetic flavours.
• Natural Flavours These are usually extremely complex mixtures of many
different substances. Sometimes, the flavour of a natural flavouring agent
may depend upon a single substance, e.g., the flavour of clove oil is
because of the chemical eugenol that consti- tutes 85% of clove oil or it
may be present in extremely small amounts such as citral in oil of lemon
which constitutes 5% of the oil. Natural flavouring agents are composed
mainly of aromatic organic compounds present as volatile essential oils
or as non-volatile constituents such as resins and oleoresins.
 The aroma of onion, garlic, cabbage, etc. is mainly due to sulphur-
containing compounds.
 Other flavouring components in vegetables are methanol, acetone,
propanal, etc.
• Processed Flavours These flavours develop during processing by decomposition,
combination with other compounds, or formation of a new compound. The
following flavours form during processing of various foods.
• Flavour resulting from enzyme action: When vegetable tissues are cut or damaged,
e.g., onion and garlic, the crushed garlic odour is because of the formation of diallyl
disulfide.
• Flavour produced by microbiological action during fermentation of sugar to alcohol
by yeast and fermentation of milk to curd and cheese by bacteria.
• Flavours formed during cooking and other heat processing, e.g., cooked meat
flavour and aroma of freshly baked bread or roasted coffee beans
• Undesirable flavours caused by oxidation, e.g., oils turning rancid in pickles and fried
snacks such as chiwda and chakli
• Added Flavours Natural flavours or synthetic flavours are often added to food to
increase its acceptability.
• 1. Adding natural flavourings and extracts, e.g., natural essences from fruits,
essential oils extracted from spices, beef extract, yeast extract, etc. Vanilla essence
is prepared by extracting the essential oil from vanilla pod with ethanol.
• 2. Adding imitation or synthetic flavours that consist of a blend of chemicals which
smells like the original substance, e.g., saffron flavour instead of pure saffron,
vanillin is the synthetic flavour instead of vanilla.
• The electronic nose is a gadget which can measure the quality of odour very quickly
and objectively.
• Commercial flavour is usually a mixture of essential oils, aroma chemicals, gums,
resins, emulsifiers, etc. in which the actual flavour ingredient is approximately 1%.
Flavour Enhancers
• The following chemicals are used as flavour enhancers.
• Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is also called aji-no-moto or Chinese salt. It is
the sodium salt of glutamic acid, an amino acid. Glutamate is present
naturally in many foods such as meat, fish, poultry, milk and many vegetables
such as peas, mushrooms, and tomatoes. It draws out the hidden flavour of
food and reduces the less desirable flavours. MSG increases salivation and its
excessive consumption leads to a condition known as ‘Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome’ in which people suffer from various symptoms such as a burning
sensation, migraine like symptoms, and chest pain.
• Under the PFA act, MSG has been banned in foods meant for infants below
12 months of age, and should not exceed 1% by weight in foods meant for
adults.
• Nucleotides are flavour enhancers widely present in plant and animal cells.
Like MSG, nucleotides bring out the flavour of foods. They are 50 to 100 times
stronger than MSG. 1g of nucleotides is used with 50g of MSG, with a flavour
enhancing effect equal to 100g of MSG used alone. It is used in processed
foods such as potato chips, peanuts, dry and canned soups, sauces, ketchups,
sausages, canned vegetables, and meat.
• Maltol is used as a flavour enhancer for sweet flavours. It is found in several
plants and is formed when cocoa, coffee, and malt are roasted and in bread
when it is baked.
• Salt is used in food for its flavour, as a preservative, and as a dietary
constituent. The main role of salt in food is for salty taste, flavour
intensification, and as a digestive stimulant. It is used at 2% level.
• Sodium-restricted flavouring: When salt is restricted on health
grounds because of hypertension, oedema, kidney disorders, etc., the
flavour of food can be improved by using herbs and spices such as
pepper, dry mustard, paprika, lime juice, mint, celery, onion, ginger,
garlic, and bay leaf. Salt substitutes are salts which do not contain
sodium but contain potassium or ammonium instead, such as
potassium chloride and ammonium chloride.
Flavouring agents are widely used in the food industry to
1. Enhance a food flavour, e.g., addition of chocolate essence to chocolate cake.
2. Replace flavours lost while processing food.
3. Give a particular flavour to a food.
4. Mask some undesirable flavours in order to increase the acceptability of a
food.
Browning Reactions in Food
Browning Reactions in Food
• Browning is a common colour change seen in food during
preparation, processing, or storage of food. It occurs in varying
degrees in some food material. The colours produced range from
cream or pale yellow to dark brown or black, depending on the food
item and the extent of the reaction.
• Browning reactions may be desirable or it may be undesirable.
• Browning reactions contribute to the aroma, flavour, and colour of
the product such as the brown crust of bread and all baked goods,
potato chips, roasted nuts, roasted coffee bear caramel, peanut
brittle, and many other processed foods.
Types of browning reactions
• Browning reactions observed in food may be classified as — enzymatic
browning and non-enzymatic browning.
• Enzymatic Browning Some light coloured fresh fruits and vegetables darken
when exposed to air as a result of the presence of oxidative enzymes.
Enzymatic Browning takes place only in fruits and vegetables which contain
phenolic compounds. These phenolic compounds act as the substrate, and in
the presence of oxygen and by the action of enzymes, the following oxidative
reaction is observed. Phenol oxidase enzymes are
specific for certain substrates and
are present in many fruits and
vegetables such as apples,
bananas, pears, peaches,
potatoes, and brinjals.
Prevention of enzymatic browning
• Application of heat Blanching or cooking fruits and vegetables. Enzymes are protein in nature
and heat denatures proteins there by inactivating the enzymes.
• Addition of salt “Vegetables may be immersed in a solution of sodium chloride to retard
enzymatic browning. The chloride ion in NaCl inhibits enzyme activity.
• Lowering the pH Enzymatic browning is prevented by lowering the pH to 2.5-2.7 by addition of
acid. Acids used to prevent browning are ascorbic acid, malic acid, citric acid, and lime juice.
• Chilling a food below temperatures optimum for enzyme activity Optimum temperature for
enzymes to act is 43°C (109°F). In cold storage, the browning reaction slows down,
• Avoiding contact with oxygen Coating fruit with sugar, Immersing vegetables in water, Vacuum
packing
• Sulphuring of fruits Fruit is treated to sulphur fumes prior to drying. Treatment with sulphur
dioxide (SO,) gas or sulphurous acid solution (H,SO3) or 0.25% sodium sulfite for 45 seconds is
adequate to prevent browning.
Non-Enzymatic Browning
• Maillard reaction Maillard was the first to describe the development
of a brown colour in mixtures containing amino acids and reducing
sugars. The reaction is also known as carbonylamine reaction or
protein sugar reaction. The brown pigment formed contributes to the
aroma, flavour, and colour of many ready-to-eat cereals, toffees,
malted barley, and bakery products such as bread,
• The characteristic flavour developed differs in different products
because of the amino acid involved in the reaction. For example: Food
product Amino acid involved Beer Glycine Fresh bread Leucine Maple
syrup Aminobutyric acid
• Caramelization Sugars are caramelized at 163-170°C or 325-338°F
because of action of heat. Darkening of syrups, brown colour of
candies such as caramels, taffy, and brittle are because of
caramelization reaction. Caramelization or sugar browning reaction
occurs with sugar alone. Sugar is broken down into a number of
compounds because of intense heat.
• Ascorbic acid browning Cocum and strawberry preserves undergo a
change in colour during storage. The ascorbic acid present in these
fruits undergoes oxidation with the formation of a compound which
produces a brown pigment and causes discolouration.