A combination of xanthan gum (XG), propylene glycol alginate (PGA) and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) was found to stabilize whey cheese dressing for a period of four months
“The results show that salad dressing with whey as aqueous phase and stabilised by a ternary combination of XG, PGA and CMC can be a technological alternative to the food industry,” wrote the researchers in the International Journal of Food Science & Technology.
Salad dressings are oil-in-water emulsions, and hydrocolloids such as XG, PGA and CMC are commonly used alone or in combination. According to background information in the article, the PGA-XG combination is one of the most common blends in salad dressings, “mainly in emulsions with low concentrations of oil”, they added.
Formulation details
The Brazilian researchers prepared a series of dressings using 'Minas Frescal' whey cheese, “one of the most appreciated dairy products in Brazil”, and stabilized using different combinations of XG, PGA, and CMC.
The stability, viscosity, and flow behaviour of the samples were tested during 120 days of storage. All of the formulations were reported to be stable over the four months storage period.
The researchers report that PGA contributed most to increasing the flow behaviour, while XG played the most important role in increasing the consistency of the dressing. CMC was found to impact the most on the viscosity of the emulsions.
An optimum formulation of 25, 25, and 50 per cent PGA, XG, and CMC, respectively, was reported by the Brazilians.
Salad dressings
According to Mintel, sales of salad dressings have fallen slightly in the US in recent years. Between 2004 and 2006, the market analyst found a 5.2 per cent decrease in sales in the US in food, drug, and mass market (FDM) channels. The market was still valued at $1.6 billion, however.
The falling numbers have been put down to competition from olive oil, and other toppings such as cheese and bacon. The health aspect of salad dressings has also influenced the market, with Mintel’s Global New Products Database (GNPD) revealing "low-/no-/reduced-fat" topped the table of claims for new salad dressing product launches.
Source: International Journal of Food Science & Technology Volume 44 Issue 4, Pages 777-783"Stability and rheological behaviour of salad dressing obtained with whey and different combinations of stabilizers" Authors: V. de Cassia da Fonseca, C.W.I. Haminiuk, D.R. Izydoro, N. Waszczynskyj, A. de Paula Scheer, M.-R. Sierakowski