JP-7854803-B2 - Preventing coagulation of plant-based milk

Inventors

• 藤岡 裕起

Assignees

• 天野エンザイム株式会社
• アマノ エンザイム ヨーロッパ リミテッド

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20200219

Priority Date

20190221

Claims (15)

1. A plant-based milk used as an additive to liquid food and beverages at temperatures of 60°C or higher, The aforementioned liquid food and beverage has a pH of 5 to 7 after the addition of plant-based milk. The aforementioned plant-based milk is a plant-based milk that has been treated with a protein deamidation enzyme.
2. The plant-based milk according to claim 1, wherein the plant-based milk is nut milk, soy milk, pea milk, oat milk, or hemp milk.
3. The plant-based milk according to claim 2, wherein the nuts used as raw materials for the nut milk are one or more nuts selected from almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, pecans, macadamia nuts, pistachios, walnuts, Brazil nuts, peanuts, coconuts, chestnuts, sesame seeds, and pine nuts.
4. A plant-based milk according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the raw material plant protein concentration is 0.2% (w/v) to 10.0% (w/v).
5. The plant-based milk according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the dispersibility is improved by the aforementioned treatment.
6. The plant-based milk according to claim 5, which does not undergo protein aggregation when mixed with weakly acidic to weakly alkaline liquid food or beverage (provided the pH of the mixture is 5 or higher).
7. The plant-based milk according to claim 6, wherein the pH of the liquid food or beverage is 5 to 7.
8. The plant-based milk according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the liquid food or beverage is selected from the group consisting of coffee, coffee beverages, tea, tea beverages, fruit juice, fruit juice beverages, sports drinks, nutritional supplements, soups, curries, cocoa, and chocolate beverages, and is a raw material, intermediate product, or final product of a beverage or liquid food.
9. A plant-based milk according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which does not contain emulsifiers or thickening polysaccharides for preventing coagulation.
10. The plant-based milk according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the protein deamide enzyme is an enzyme derived from a microorganism of the genus Chryseobacterium.
11. The plant-based milk according to claim 10, wherein the microorganism of the genus Chryseobacterium is Chryseobacterium proteoricum.
12. A liquid food or beverage containing plant-based milk, obtained by adding the plant-based milk described in any one of claims 1 to 11 to a liquid food or beverage at a temperature of 60°C or higher, and having a pH of 5 to 7 .
13. The liquid food or beverage according to claim 1 or 2 , which is a beverage or liquid food selected from the group consisting of coffee beverages, coffee whiteners, tea beverages, fruit juices, sports drinks, nutritional supplements, soups, curries, cocoa beverages, and chocolate beverages.
14. A method for producing a liquid food product containing plant milk, comprising mixing plant-based milk treated with a protein deamidation enzyme with a raw material, intermediate product, or final product of a liquid food product at a temperature of 60°C or higher to prepare a liquid food product containing plant milk with a pH of 5 to 7 .
15. The manufacturing method according to claim 14 , comprising the following steps (1) and (2): (1) A step of preparing plant-based milk treated with a protein deamidation enzyme, (2) A step of mixing the plant-based milk prepared in (1) with a raw material, intermediate product, or final product of a liquid food or beverage at 60°C or higher to obtain a liquid food or beverage containing plant-based milk with a pH of 5 to 7 .

Description

This invention relates to plant-based milk. More specifically, to plant-based milk with improved dispersibility (less prone to coagulation) and its uses. This application claims priority under Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-029904 filed on 21 February 2019 and under Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-077841 filed on 16 April 2019, the entire contents of said patent application are incorporated by reference. Against the backdrop of allergy concerns, the rise of vegetarianism, and religious reasons, soy-derived proteins, which are plant-based, have become popular as an alternative ingredient to animal-derived milk protein sources, such as cow's milk. However, as their popularity has grown, it has become clear that soy can also cause allergies, and in recent years, there has been a surge in the development of plant-based protein sources to replace soy. In fact, proteins derived from grains such as peas, rice, and oats, as well as nut proteins such as almonds, cashews, and peanuts, are being commercialized one after another as substitutes for soy in foods and beverages, indicating a high need and demand for diversification of plant-based protein sources to replace soy in order to avoid allergies. On the other hand, when replacing milk protein sources with plant-derived protein sources, there are cases where a direct replacement is not possible due to differences in protein type, functionality, or the components that make up the aroma and taste. For example, it is known that nut milks such as almond milk and peanut milk will coagulate when added to high-temperature acidic beverages such as coffee and tea as a substitute for cow's milk. Normally, such coagulation does not occur with cow's milk and can be said to be a phenomenon unique to plant-based milks such as nut milks. To the best of our knowledge, there are no reports (literature, etc.) that clearly explain the mechanism of protein aggregation that occurs when nut milk is added to high-temperature acidic liquid foods, or how to deal with it. Although there has been trial and error among consumers regarding countermeasures (for example, mixing nut milk and coffee after reducing the temperature difference, or pouring coffee into nut milk slowly), a fundamental solution has yet to be found. On the other hand, milk proteins exhibit unstable dispersion stability under acidic conditions near their isoelectric point, and it is known that acidic milk beverages are prone to precipitation and aggregation. To prevent this aggregation of milk proteins, polysaccharides such as pectin and carboxymethylcellulose are added (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). While the use of such dispersion stabilizers may also prevent the aggregation of nut proteins, the use of additives is essential. Furthermore, when polysaccharides are used, there is a possibility of side effects such as increased viscosity depending on the amount added. Regarding preventing the aggregation of milk proteins without adding additives, a coffee whitener treated with protein deamidation enzymes has been proposed (Patent Document 3). However, this coffee whitener is a product containing emulsifiers, and its use is limited to beverages such as coffee and tea that are typically used as whiteners. International Publication No. 2012/176852 brochurePatent No. 3885194International Publication No. 2011/108633 brochure Summary of experimental results (relationship between protein concentration in nut milk and coagulation/coagulation prevention effect).Summary of experimental results (relationship between liquid pH and flocculation/flocculation prevention effect).Summary of experimental results (anti-coagulation effect in various liquids). The results of Experiment 1 (anti-coagulation in coffee) are also included.Summary of experimental results (anti-coagulation effect of nut milks other than almond milk).Summary of experimental results (relationship between liquid temperature and coagulation/coagulation prevention effect).Summary of experimental results (examination of enzyme treatment conditions (amount of enzyme added, reaction temperature, reaction time)).Summary of experimental results (anti-coagulation effect of soy milk).Summary of experimental results (anti-coagulation effect in plant-based milk). 1. Plant-Based Milk with Improved Dispersibility The first aspect of the present invention relates to plant-based milk (also called a plant-based protein-containing beverage) with improved dispersibility when added to high-temperature liquid food or beverages (beverages or liquid foods). "Liquid food or beverages" includes not only final products but also those used as raw materials for other foods and beverages, or intermediate products. The plant-based milk of the present invention is treated with a protein deamidation enzyme, and as a result of this treatment, its dispersibility is improved. Because the plant-based milk of the present invention exhibits excellent dispersibility when added to hi