Acceleration of polymorphic transition of cocoa butter and cocoa butter equivalent by addition of d‐limonene

Abstract

The essential oils obtained from citric fruits have been used as aromatizing agents in various foods. However, the addition of orange essential oil, d‐limonene, to cocoa butter (CB) has been shown to have an influence on its crystallization behavior. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of adding d‐limonene at concentrations of 1.5 and 5% w/w on the polymorphic transitions in Brazilian CB and in a commercial cocoa butter equivalent (CBE). X‐ray diffraction (XRD) was used to identify the polymorphic forms in the samples over 27 days of storage at 25°C. The results showed that d‐limonene addition was able to accelerate the polymorphic transition in CB and CBE. The addition of 5% w/w d‐limonene to Brazilian CB accelerated the complete transition from βV to the more stable βVI polymorphic form in only 11 days. Under the same conditions, pure CB remained in βV form and the transition was not completed in CBE samples. The polymorphic transition of CBE samples appeared to be governed by the characteristics of the triacylglycerol (TAG) profile and only intensified with d‐limonene incorporation.Practical applications: d‐Limonene is an essential oil that has been used industrially to give orange flavor in chocolate products. Our results showed that d‐limonene addition to CB and CBE accelerates the polymorphic transition from polymorphic form V to VI in a short period. As the polymorphic form VI is more stable than form V, the addition of d‐limonene to chocolates and the like allows them to keep their melting properties and sensorial quality for long storage periods.Changes of d‐spacing values and Powder X‐ray diffraction patterns of Brazilian cocoa butter and cocoa butter equivalent samples containing 5% d‐limonene stored for 27 days (4 [d4], 11 [d11], 27 [d27] days) at 25°C.