The use of choline chloride for salt reduction and texture enhancement in bread

• Published in: Applied Food Research 2023-12, Vol.3 (2), p.100371, Article 100371
• Main Authors: Crucean, Doina, Pontoire, Bruno, Debucquet, Gervaise, Le-Bail, Alain, Le-Bail, Patricia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bread; Chemical Sciences; Choline chloride; Food engineering; Life Sciences; Salt reduction; Staling; Starch
• ISSN: 2772-5022; 2772-5022
• DOI: 10.1016/j.afres.2023.100371

Cereal products, and in particular bread, are the main source of salt in human diets. However, salt is a critical ingredient in breadmaking, and its reduction can have a negative impact on bread quality. In order to respond to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s recommendation to reduce dietary salt intake, this research aims to develop a bread recipe "reduced" in salt (sodium chloride or SC) by -50 % and partly substituted by choline chloride (CC). The effect of CC on the properties of bread was studied during baking, cooling and storage of bread. It was observed that partially substituting SC with CC led to an improvement in bread texture. Indeed, CC bread was technologically similar to the control bread. In aqueous solution, CC behaves like an ionic liquid and causes a reorganization of the internal structure of the starch grain. As a result, the staling study highlighted the positive effect of CC on bread texture and on the starch retrogradation. CC limited amylopectin recrystallization by reducing water availability in the medium, consequently slowing down the staling of the bread.