It’s not just the taste of chocolate that excites our senses. The smooth texture is also a big reason why you want to visit again and again.
The combination of cocoa, sugar, and fat is perfect, but unfortunately, these ingredients come with their own health drawbacks.
Researchers at the University of Leeds in the UK have proposed a new way to reduce the fat content of chocolate without sacrificing its smooth texture.
The proposal is based on how an artificial 3D tongue receives luxury chocolate bars.
When the robot’s mouthpiece was introduced to four different samples of dark chocolate, the researchers found that the fat on the outside of the bar coated the tongue in a way that it melted.
If this were the case in the human mouth, the fat content hidden in the body of the chocolate bar might not touch the tongue or cheek much before mixing with saliva and sliding down the throat.
The tongue was tested with chocolate bars of four different fat, sugar and cocoa compositions. Cocoa content ranged from 70% to 99%. Finally, bars with higher fat content had better 3D tongue lubricity.
Additionally, when greasy chocolate stuck to the tongue, cocoa particles were released as they hit the tongue’s taste buds.
When zooming in on models of single tongue ridges known as papillae, researchers noticed a similar sticky phenomenon.
The authors acknowledge that their tongue model is a simplification and may not translate to a real human mouth. postulate “Lubrication of the surface of single teat scales is governed by the bridging effect of cocoa butter between cocoa particles…”
In other words, the more fat there is around a chocolate bar, the more likely it is to stick to your tongue and the inside of your cheeks.
“Even if the chocolate is 5% or 50% fat, it will form a drip in your mouth and give you that chocolate sensation.” I will explain Nutritionist Anwesha Sarkar.
“It shows that the fat layer needs to be on the outer layer of the chocolate. This is the most important, followed by the effective coating of the cocoa particles with fat. It’s helpful.”
A practical study needs to be done to see if it is possible to create a low-fat chocolate bar while preserving the texture and flavor of the product.
The current study does not examine how fat content affects the taste of chocolate, but fatter chocolate may trap cocoa to human taste buds, enhancing flavor. .
The authors hope to use their results to create the next generation of chocolate bars that are healthier and tastier than ever before.
“We believe that dark chocolate can be manufactured with a gradient layer structure that provides the desired self-satisfaction experience by covering the surface of the chocolate and particles with fat without adding too much fat to the interior of the chocolate. I will,” said the team. Conclusion.
i hope they are right.
This research ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.
