MGK-N as a fat substitute/fiber enhancer in food

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 76-81) ; California State University, Northridge. Department of Home Economics. ; Five food products were formulated to study the feasibility of using a glucomannan derivative, MG Konnyaku mannan (MGK-N) as a means of decreasing dietary fat and increasing dietary fiber in the American diet. The products tested included chocolate muffins, oatmeal cookies, hamburger patties, peanut butter and strawberry ices. The quality of the products was evaluated by subjective and objective measurements. Sensory evaluations showed that oatmeal cookies with MGK-N replacing 50% of the margarine were significantly more acceptable (p<0.01) than the control cookies; regular chocolate muffins and chocolate muffins in which 100% of the corn oil was replaced with MGK-N had no significant differences (p>0.05) in flavor, and there were no significant differences (p>0.05) in the acceptability of standard hamburger patties and those in which 20% (by weight) of the ground beef was replaced by MGK-N. Strawberry ices without MGK-N were significantly (p<0.01) more acceptable than the strawberry ices in which 50% (by volume) of the water was replaced by MGK-N. Peanut butter without MGK-N was significantly (p<0.01) more acceptable than the peanut butter which contained 20% (by weight) MGK-N. The volume of chocolate muffins decreased 12.5% and the tenderness increased 13.0% with the substitution of MGK-N. With MGK-N substitution, the muffins increased 11.0% in fiber, and decreased 25.8% in kilocalories, and 78.4% in fat. MGK-N oatmeal cookies increased 19.6% in volume and 12.7% m tenderness. With MGK-N substitution, oatmeal cookies increased 11.9% in fiber, and decreased 14.0% in kilocalories, and 32.7% in fat. Hamburgers in which 20% (by weight) of the meat was replaced with MGK-N were 10.3% more moist and 35.0% softer than the control sample. With MGK-N substitution, hamburgers increased 116.9% in fiber, and decreased 17.0% in kilocalories, and 17.9% in fat. Peanut butter in which 20% (by weight) of the product was replaced with MGK-N had a grainier, darker appearance, and a 46.6% more firm consistency. MGK-N peanut butter decreased 9.9% in fiber, 20.1% in kilocalories, and 20.7% in fat. Strawberry ices in which 50% (by volume) of the water was replaced with MGK-N increased by 0.57 grams of fiber in a 0.25 cup serving size. The results demonstrate that cookies, muffins, hamburger, and potentially many other products can be excellent vehicles for utilizing MGK-N as a fat substitute or fiber enhancer, maintaining quality and consumer acceptability.