Flavor Chemistry

Flavor is a combination of taste and aroma

Taste - sweet, salty, sour, bitter - only what can be sensed on the tongue -nerve sensations for metallic, astringent, pungent

Aroma - volatiles are released in mouth and then sensed in the nasal cavity
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Food flavors
-mixtures of natural and/or artificial aromatic compounds
-designed to impart a flavor, modify a flavor, or mask an undesirable flavor
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Natural versus Artificial

Natural - concentrated flavoring constituents derived from plant or animal sources Artificial - substances used to impart flavor that are not derived from plant or animal sources Spice - natural aromatic vegetable substances with no principle flavoring component removed
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Most natural flavors are concentrated from botanicals -plants, trees, fruits, and vegetables Most artificial flavors are synthesized with high purity - pharmaceutical flavors

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Isolation techniques
- Steam distillation- mint and herbal oils
- Solvent extraction- vanilla & oleoresins - Expression- citrus oils - Supercritical fluid extractiontargeted extractions
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Natural flavors can also be enzymatically or chemically produced - fermentation reactions - microbial enzymes Saccharomyces Sp. Lactobacillus Sp. Bacillus Sp. Molds - Enzyme reactors Maillard reaction products
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Examples of Maillard flavor compounds

Glucose Glucose Glucose Glucose Fructose Fructose Fructose Fructose + + + + + + + + Glutamic acid Lysine Methionine Phenylalanine Glutamic acid Lysine Methionine Phenylalanine = chicken = burnt fried potato = cabbage = caramel = = = = chicken fried potato bean soup dirty dog

-Synthetic chocolate flavor development

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Artificial Flavors
-Typically esters -esters have pleasant fruity aromas -derivatives of carboxylic acids -carboxylic acids convert in a single step via "Fisher esterification"

-a condensation reaction
ACID + ALCOHOL --> ESTER + WATER Figure- ester formation -most artificial flavors are -simple mixtures of esters Isobutyl formate + isobutyl acetate = ~ raspberry
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Flavor stabalization
-Need to protect from light, heat, oxygen, water -Liquid flavors are typically dissolved in solvents Partially hydrogenated oil or brominated vegetable oil Ethanol, propylene glycol, glycerin
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-Dry flavors are typically encapsulated - Spray drying

- Coacervation - protein film coated droplets

- Plating - coat flavor onto sugar or salt -Extrusion - glassy sugar film -Inclusion complex - beta cyclodextrins -Secondary coatings - high melting temperature fat
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Flavor interactions
-pH, tartness of acids dependent on acid
-acidulant, the type of acid used influences intensity of other flavors -carbohydrates, can bind flavor compounds, so less flavor may be needed at low sugar levels
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-sweeteners, sweetness can impact flavor intensity -lipids, flavors partition, fat helps flavor impact -protein, selective binding of flavor compounds
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Flavors are composed of mixtures of a variety of compounds

-Amyl, butyl, ethyl esters
- Amyl acetate = sweet fruity/ banana/ pear - Amyl caproate = sharp fruity/ pineapple - Amyl formate = sweet/ fruity

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-Organic acids containing aldehydes , aromatic esters, alcohols, keytones - Acetic acid = vinegary - Propionic acid = sour milk - Butyric acid = buttery

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-Green flavors

- cis 3-hexenol = green leafy - trans 2-hexenal = green apple

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-Citrus flavors are mixtures of: - Aldehydes - Aromatic esters - Terpenes - Alcohols

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Figure- Components of citrus oils and GC output - Terpenes - Limonene = sweet citrus/ orange peel - Alpha pinene = warm resinous/ pine-like - Dipentene = fresh citrus/ lemon like - Floral aldehydes - Citral = floral/ sweet/ lemon (pledge) - Octanol = floral/ fatty/ orange-like
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Dairy flavors - chemical and enzymatic

- Short chain fatty acids - Saturated - Unsaturated - Aliphatic alcohols - propyl, butyl, octyl - Lactonones - large chain delta lactones - Aliphatic aldehydes acetyldehyde, butyraldehyde, propionaldehyde
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- Sulfides - dimethyl, butyl, dimethyl sulfides -Aliphatic esters - butyrates, laurates, valerates - Di-keytones - diacetyl, acetylpropionyl

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- Lactones - undecalactone (C11) = peach/ sweet - octalactone (C8) = cooked coconut/ sweet

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-Brown flavors
-Caramelized, roasted or burnt character
-Bread-yeast, caramel, chocolate, coffee, maple, peanut

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- Sweet brown compounds

Vanillin = sweet/ chocolate-like Maltol = sweet/ malty/ brown Di-hydrocoumarin = sweet/ caramel/ nutlike

- Non-sweet brown compounds

- Dimethyl pyrazine = nutty/roasted
- 2,3,5 trimethyl pyrazine = chocolate/ roasted

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- Woody compounds
- Alpha lonone = woody/balsamic/violet/red raspberry - Beta lonone = woody/balsamic/black raspberry

- Spicy compounds
Cinnamic aldehyde = cinnamon Eugenol = cloves Thymol = thyme Zingerone = ginger oil Capsicum = peppers

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- Sulfur compounds
- Diallyl disulfide = garlic onion - Methyl mercaptan = natural gas - Methyl thio butyrate = sour milk

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- Sweet cherry flavor

- Esters: building blocks - isoamyl acetate, iso amyl butyrate, ethyl acetate - Acids: impact and tartness - acetic acid - Aldehydes: characterizing components - benzaldehyde - Floral topnotes: sweetness, floralizer - heliotropine, anisic aldehyde - Spice: tingle and brightness -cinnamon leaf oil - Lactone: sweet, creamy, mellower - delta undecalactone - Solvent: blending of flavors, solubilizer - benzyl alcohol, propylene glycol
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