Evaluation of the effect of Gleditsia amorphoides gum on the properties of rennet-induced milk protein gels

The study and characterisation of food gels obtained from phase-separated systems has gained interest since a wide variety of gel structures and textures can be developed. In this study, the phase and rheological behaviour of milk protein/espina corona gum (MP/ECG) mixtures were evaluated. These mixtures presented a segregative phase separation and a rheological behaviour proportional to the ECG concentration. Microstructural analysis, textural parameters and water-holding capacity of gels obtained from MP/ECG mixed systems using rennet as gelling agent were determined. At high ECG concentrations (≥0.05%, w/v), the gel microstructure changed from a coarse strand to a bicontinous microstructure. Such microstructural changes affected the textural parameters, firmness and break point, and the water-holding capacity of the gels. The results obtained in this work could be explained by the interplay between the segregative interaction of the biopolymers and the rennet-induced gelation rate.