Masking of bitterness in dairy protein hydrolysates: Comparison of an electronic tongue and a trained sensory panel as means of directing the masking strategy

Abstract

Sodium caseinate hydrolysates (NaCaHs) are known to be a rich source of bioactive peptides but are also known to have a bitter taste which can make them difficult to incorporate into foods. The objective of the study was to identify whether a commercially available electronic tongue (e-tongue) could be used to identify sweeteners and flavours which reduce bitterness perception in model beverages containing NaCaHs. The two NaCaHs analysed in this study were found to be strongly bitter, the sensory panel found sucralose to be the most effective sweetener, reducing bitterness by a minimum of 39% at the lowest concentration assessed, 0.017% w/w, and the flavour vanilla was the most effective flavouring for further reducing bitterness in a sweetened model beverage. The e-tongue was found to be an effective tool for measuring the reduction of bitterness in of NaCaHs due to different sweeteners but not for evaluating the effect of flavourings in the model beverage. The results also showed good agreement between the e-tongue and sensory panel in the measurement of bitterness and sweetness in sweetened NaCaHs suggesting that the e-tongue maybe a useful device for the selection of sweeteners as bitterness masking agents in NaCaHs.