FAT-FREE BREAD STUFFS AND PROCESS THEREFORE

FARCES AU PAIN EXEMPTES DE MATIERES GRASSES ET METHODE D'OBTENTION

English Abstract

This invention pertains to bread stuffs, particularly tortillas, wherein starch is utilized
in place of fats or oils, to obtain a high-quality fat-free product.

French Abstract

Cette invention concerne des pâtes à pain, en particulier des pâtes à tortilla, où l'amidon remplace les graisses ou huiles pour donner un produit sans gras de haute qualité.

Claims

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WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. A fat-free bread stuff having at least 2% starch.
2. The fat-free bread stuff of claim 1, having at least 4% starch.
3. The fat-free bread stuff of claims 1 or 2, wherein the starch is selected from
the group consisting of: potato starch, wheat starch, rice starch, corn starch, oat starch, rye
starch and pea starch.
4. The fat-free bread stuff of claims 1, 2 or 3, wherein the dough of said breadstuff has a moisture content of less than 50%.
5. The fat-free bread stuff of claims 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein said bread stuff is a
tortilla.
6. A process for producing a fat-free bread stuff, wherein starch is utilized in said
bread stuff in an amount of at least 2%.
7. The process of claim 6, wherein the starch is selected from the group
consisting of: potato starch, wheat starch, rice starch, corn starch, oat starch, rye starch and
pea starch.
8. The process of claims 6 or 7, wherein the dough of said bread stuff has a
moisture content of less than 50%.
9. The process of claims 6, 7 or 8, wherein said bread stuff is a tortilla.

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10. A low-fat bread stuff having at least 2% starch.
11. The low-fat bread stuff of claim 10, having at least 4% starch.
12. The low-fat bread stuff of claims 10 or 11, wherein the starch is selected from
the group consisting of: potato starch, wheat starch, rice starch, corn starch, oat starch, rye
starch and pea starch.
13. The low-fat bread stuff of claims 10, 11 or 12, wherein the dough of said bread
stuff has a moisture content less than 50%.
14. The low-fat bread stuff of claims 10, 11, 12 or 13, wherein said bread stuff is
a tortilla.
15. A process for producing a low-fat bread stuff, wherein starch is utilized in said
bread stuff in an amount of at least 2%.
16. The process of claim 15, wherein the starch is selected from the group
consisting of: potato starch, wheat starch, rice starch, corn starch, oat starch, rye starch and
pea starch.
17. The process of claims 15 or 16, wherein the dough of said bread stuff has a
moisture content of less than 50%.
18. The process of claims 15, 16 or 17, wherein said bread stuff is a tortilla.

Description

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S P E C I F I C A T I O N
(Case No. 93,962)
FAT-FREE BREAD STUFFS AND PROCESS THEREFORE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENIION
As health and fitness awareness increases, further scrutiny is given to
calories consumed. Resultantly, consumers continue to look for low-fat and fat-
free foods. However, consumers are often unwilling to sacrifice taste, quality,
texture and other organoleptic characteristics simply to obtain a low-fat or fat-free
product.
Food manufacturers have continually attempted to meet the consumer
demand for high quality, low-fat and fat-free products. Providing high quality, fat-
free products has been particularly difficult in the baking industry, because fat
plays an important role in the taste and texture of finished baked goods. Too
often, using fat replacers or fat mimetic compounds sacrifices some of the quality
characteristics of the baked good. To avoid quality problems, food manufacturerssometimes resort to complex formula manipulations. These complex formulas
may be more costly than conventional formulations and also may present
unanticipated problems. lherefore, the baking industry continues to search for
simple, viable formulations that yield high quality low-fat and fat-free products.
It is the object of this invention to provide a fat-free bread stuff and
process therefore, particularly directed toward a tortilla, that possesses taste,
quality and texture attributes similar to fat-containing bread stuffs, without
necessitating complex formulation changes.

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DETAILED DESCRIPIION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a formulation to provide low-fat or
fat-free bread stuffs, particularly tortillas, with acceptable organoleptic attributes.
In the search for fat-free bread stuffs, especially tortillas, it has typically been
found that using a normal formulation for fat-cont~ining bread stuffs and simplysubstituting particular ingredients to reduce the fat content has not produced
products with acceptable taste, quality and texture characteristics. Thus, complex
formulation changes were often attempted.
This invention provides high quality bread stuffs, especially tortillas,
without any complex formulation changes. The unexpected results of this
invention are demonstrated by its sheer simp]icity, in light of the complex
formulations prevalent in the field.
Specifically, this invention comprises simply utilizing starch in lieu of oils
or other fats. Replacing the fat and oil containing ingredients with starch
significantly reduces the fat content of the finished product such that the product
meets the standardized definition for fat-free products. That is, the products have
no more than 0.5 grams of fat per serving size or per reference amount,
whichever is larger. The following are some illustrative reference amounts:
tortillas, 55 grams; breads, rolls, mllffln~ and English muffins, 50 grams; and
biscuits, croissants and bagels, 55 grams.
Tortillas and other bread stuffs made pursuant to this invention possess
comparable organoleptic characteristics of like fat containing products, including
opacity, flexibility, lubricity, mouth feel, taste, tenderness and shelf life. The
added starch component of this invention tenderizes the dough and provides the
perception of fat. In many instances, the added starch may impart a creamy, fat-like quality to the bread stuff, which is often lacking in fat-free products. Further,
the physical characteristics of the starch may help in reducing the stickiness of the

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dough, a role usually filled by fat cont~ining components; thus yielding a doughthat is suitable for handling in commercial applications.
Most starches, obtained from a wide variety of sources, will be suitable for
use in this invention. ~or example, starches such as potato, wheat, rice, corn, oat,
rye and pea may be used in this invention. Further, various types of starches may
be used including treated, untreated, modified, unmodified and hydrolyzed. It iscontemplated that the above starches are only illustrative, and not exhaustive, of
the starches that may be utilized in this invention. The use of other starches may
be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, upon reading this speclfication,
depending upon the specific formula used, and any other nutritional or quality
objectives
It has been found that, pursuant to this invention, formulas utilizing as
little as 2% starch will be effective in providing a fat-free product. However,
formulas containing at least 4~o starch appear to be the most effective. That is,
products having at least 4% starch are the easiest to handle in industrial
applications and may have somewhat better organoleptic properties than those
having lesser amounts of starch. The effective maximum starch content appears
to be approximately 70~o. The precise amount of starch required for each
product (between the parameters of 25~ and 70~) will depend upon a variety of
factors including, but not limited to, the particular products, the product quality
sought and varying economic factors. In light of this specification, the amount of
starch needed for each application (between the parameters of 2~o and ?~~) will
be obvious to those skilled in the art.
Some other fat-free formulations that have attempted to avoid complex
formulation changes utilize significant amounts of water and fiber. Typically,
those formulas yield a dough with a moisture content greater than 50~.
However, those formulations are only able to obtain a fat-free product by
sacrificing quality characteristics such as mouth feel and shelf life.

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When bread stuffs are prepared wherein starch is simply substituted for
fats and oils, the finished product is unlike anything currently available in that it
is a low-fat or fat-free product with organoleptic characteristics that are similar
to fat-containing products, and are obtained without any complex formulation
changes. Thus, the tortillas and other bread stuffs of this invention are highlydesired by consumers and food manufacturers alike.

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PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
In the preferred embodiment, this invention is applied to m~king a fat-free
tortilla, having quality characteristics that are as good or better than fat
containing tortillas. The typical fat content of a commercially available tortilla
is 4 grams per 55 gram serving. In order to be classified as low-fat, a tortilla may
contain no more than 3 grams of fat per 55 gram serving. To be classified as no
fat, a tortilla may contain no more than 0.5 grams of fat per 55 gram serving. In
accordance with the above standards, tortillas prepared utilizing this inventioncontain less than 0.5 grams of fat per 55 gram serving.
The examples below show how, pursuant to this invention, a typical fat-
containing tortilla formu]a is modified to yield a fat-free tortilla. The formula
modification involves simply substituting starch for vegetable oil.
EXAMPLES
In example A below, tortillas were prepared using a control formula.
Then, in example B, the test formula, unmodified potato starch was substituted
into the control formula for vegetable oil. All other ingredients and conditionsremained constant. The tortillas produced in the test formula were compared
against those produced in the control formula.
The quality of the control formula tortillas was as expected for a normally
formulated tortilla. Surprisingly, the quality of the test formula tortilla was
actually superior to the control formula. Particularly important was that, unlike
other fat-free formulations, the test formula tortillas were as tender and as moist
as the control formula tortillas.

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Example A
Doughl'ortilla
Batch (g)~ormula % % fat
flour 294.540 58.712 0.968
ambient water167.725 33.433 0.000
salt 5.993 1.195 0.000
double-acting baking powder5.0000.997 0 000
vegetable oil26.636 5.309 5.379
Potassium 60rbate1.1990.239 0.000
~umaric acid 0.580 0.116 0.000
500.000 10~.000 6.348
Procedl.l e:
Dry mix ingredients for 1 minute.
Add water and oil; mix to optimum.
21.49 gram dough ball.
Sheet or press to 6 inches.
Bake as normal.

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Example B
DoughTortilla
Ing.~ l 'sBatch (g)Pormula % % fat
flour 294.540 58.712 0.968
ambient water 167.725 33.433 0.000
S L ~ potato starch26.636 5.309 0.001
salt 5.993 1.195 0.000
double-acting baking powder5.000 0.997 0.000
Potassium sorbale1.199 0.239 0.000
Fumaric acid 0.580 0.116 0.000
S00.000 100.000 0.969
Procedure:
Dry rnix ingredients for 1 minute.
Add water; mix to optimum.
21.49 gram dough ball.
Sheet or press to 6 inches.
Bake as normal.