Texture engineering of carrots for shape retention and softening through pre-steaming and enzyme-loaded nanoliposomal delivery

초록

To develop softened foods for elderly-friendly food industry, employing a dual strategy that maintains the original appearance for consumer appeal and achieves a texture soft enough to be mashed with tongue are important. Here, we combined pre-steaming with Viscozyme L (VL)-loaded nanoliposomes (NLs) (VL/NLs) infusion for these objectives. Carrot discs were pre-steamed for 10, 20, or 30 min, then immersed in distilled water (D.W), a 1% VL, or VL/NLs for 30 min at 50°C. The softening effectiveness was evaluated by analyzing enzyme activity, hardness, morphological and colorimetric changes, and weight loss in carrots. VL/NLs infusion significantly improved the uniformity and efficiency of enzymatic penetration, while VL infusion primarily acted on the exterior section of pre-steamed carrots (p < 0.05). Pre-steamed carrots immersed in VL/NLs demonstrated the most significant hardness reduction, uniformly in both interior and exterior section, while VL mainly softened the exterior section of carrots (p < 0.05). Importantly, VL/NLs treatment preserved carrot's original appearance, unlike VL treatment. These results highlight that combining pre-steaming and VL/NLs infusion generates dual functional effects−both texture softening suitable for tongue consumption and maintenance of the carrot's original shape. Overall, this study suggests a potential applicability of VL/NLs treatment as an effective softening strategy for elderly-friendly foods.

키워드