Protein-based microgels are soft colloidal particles that show strong potential to act as future fat replacers to develop novel low-calorie food as a strategy against obesity prevalent. Microgels have attracted interest as functional hydrocolloids, which can be applied to improve emulsion stability and texture, and have the potential to mimic the oral lubrication properties of fat droplets at the fat-oral surface. In our lab, we developed a facile method to fabricate uniform whey protein microgel with controllable size by modulating the protein-polysaccharide interactions. The microgel system can stabilize oil-in-water emulsion with long-term stability and strong texture. The individual contributions of microgel, protein and polysaccharide will be discussed, and the microgels can work both at the interface and in the bulk phase to improve the emulsion properties. The protein microgels present in the emulsion system can make 30% oil emulsions that show similar textural properties to emulsions containing 50% oil. Also, protein microgels in the bulk phase can work as an efficient bio-lubricant to provide “soft ball-bearing” lubrication performance in the contacting surfaces. These results demonstrate that the protein microgel system has the potential for food applications in preparing fat-reduced emulsion-based food formulations with a comparable texture to that of full-fat counterparts.

Using protein microgels as emulsion stabilizer, texture modifier, and bio-lubricant for designing fat-reduced food products

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