HK1254959B - Use of a bread improver and breadmaking method for precooked loaves stored without freezing involving the bread improver - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to the use of a bread improver allowing the prolonged storage of pre-baked bread. It also relates to an improved process for preparing baked bakery products from pre-baked bread that has been stored at room temperature or at 4°C, using the bread improver.

Bread-making, in the present context, refers to all the steps involved in producing a baked bakery product, such as breads, through baking in an oven after the fermentation of a dough or batter that by definition contains at least the following ingredients: cereal flour, water, salt, and active baker's yeast. The term "cereal flour" refers to flour derived from a single cereal or a combination of several cereals.

The preparation of a ready-to-bake bread dough is a process comprising several steps, including at least one kneading step and at least one fermentation step.

Usually, the baker works directly, meaning in a non-delayed process, which can affect the freshness of the bread. Baked in the morning, the bread remains fresh until early afternoon, after which its quality deteriorates, with the crust becoming dry or soft, and the crumb losing its crispness, flavor, and softness. Today, the modern consumer comes to buy bread that they want to be fresh at any time of day, including in the evening after work.

In order to meet this consumer demand, the baker would need to perform several baking sessions throughout the day, spaced out in time, that is to say, work on a deferred basis. However, preparing a dough ready for baking is a long and labor-intensive process, and its storage is limited in time before it goes into the oven. At room temperature, the storage period is less than 2 hours. This period is less than 75 hours if the storage is carried out at 4°C, that is to say, what is commonly referred to as positive cold. In any case, storage never exceeds 3 days.

Several processes have been developed to address this problem. 1- Baked bread freezing: For example, it has been tried to freeze completely baked bread or similar products, then defrost them just before sale by briefly placing them in the oven. This method presents two important drawbacks: on one hand, the crumb becomes dehydrated and shows white spots or rings, and on the other hand, the crust becomes flaky. Therefore, this method of freezing fully baked bread does not allow obtaining high-quality bakery products. 2- Pre-baked dough stored at 4°C or frozen: The technology of "pre-baked dough" is thus known.This technology is characterized by a pre-baking step of the fermented dough, which causes the dough to coagulate in the center and form a soft film at the periphery, which is a precursor to the crust. A characteristic of pre-baked dough is the absence of browning of this soft film: a slight browning indicates the beginning of crust formation, meaning that the pre-baking stage has already been exceeded. This will result in subsequent defects: reduced production yield and crust flaking after the final baking. Therefore, the pre-baking step is particularly delicate. The "pre-baked dough" technology usually excludes large-sized pieces.Due to the difficulty of baking a core without at the same time forming a crust, these are usually small breads, half baguettes, or short baguettes. The pre-baked dough can either be kept for several hours under conditions preventing drying (freshly pre-baked), or frozen. It is also important to ensure that the pre-baked dough does not dry out before, during, and after freezing. During the final baking, typically at the point of sale, the frozen pre-baked dough is placed directly from the freezer into the oven. Therefore, fresh bread is available at any time of day after 10 to 20 minutes of final baking.According to the shape and weight of the pre-baked dough pieces. A significant inconvenient defect of the current frozen pre-baked dough technology is the shrinkage of the pre-baked dough during the final baking, which reduces their volume by at least 10%.

The US patents US-A-4788067 and US-A-4861601 describe processes belonging to this pre-cooked dough technology, which require a final baking step of the pre-cooked dough for 10 to 15 minutes.

The document WO 2006/002985, in the name of the applicant, proposes an improved method for providing high-quality baked products throughout the day and in a short time, coming out of the oven. In this process, a fermented dough ready for baking corresponding to the said baked product is subjected to pre-baking in an oven until its crumb is set and a crust is formed and colored. The pre-baked dough thus obtained is then frozen for storage.

Thus, the techniques and processes of pre-baked dough, known from previous art, require either freezing the pre-baked dough for its preservation, or minimizing the storage period, as these processes use pre-baked dough that does not store well or for long periods.

To solve the above problems, the applicant has developed a bread improver that enables pre-baked bread to be stored at room temperature for up to 7 days, or at positive cold temperature for a period of up to 1 month while maintaining an excellent freshness state. The baked bread obtained by the final baking of the pre-baked bread using the invention's improver exhibits good taste and freshness qualities.

Therefore, the applicant has developed an improved bread baking process for bread obtained by final baking of a pre-baked dough that is stored at room temperature for a period of up to 7 days or at a positive cold temperature for several days up to 1 month, without altering the freshness of the final baked bread. This process, which will be detailed later, includes the use of the additive of the invention.

The objects of the invention are defined in the claims.

The applicant found, after numerous trials, that using a maltogenic exoamylase in the improvement process allows the pre-baked dough to be stored at room temperature or at positive cold temperatures for several days without affecting its freshness or that of the final product.

The term "maltogenic exoamylase" refers here to enzymes classified under the reference EC 3.2.1.1, which are capable of degrading maltotriose into maltose and glucose.

The enzymatic composition of the bread improver as used according to the invention may include, in addition to the maltogenic exoamylase, enzymes such as alpha or beta amylase, amyloglucosidase, pullulanase, endo and exo amylases, cellulases, xylanases, proteases, lipases, and phospholipases.

The enzymatic composition of the bread improver as used according to the invention includes, in addition to the maltogenic exoamylase, amyloglucosidase, alpha-amylase, and xylanase.

The improved composition as used according to the invention comprises: an enzymatic composition comprising maltogenic exoamylase, amyloglucosidase, alpha-amylase, and xylanase, ascorbic acid, pre-gelatinized wheat flour, and malted wheat flour.

When the enhancer is used in a bread-making process such as that described below, the various components are used at the following concentrations, expressed as a percentage of the baker's flour, that is, relative to 100% of the flour in the mixer: alpha-amylase at a concentration ranging from 50 to 200 ppm, amyloglucosidase at a concentration ranging from 50 to 500 ppm, alpha-amylase at a concentration ranging from 1 to 20 ppm, xylanase at a concentration ranging from 10 to 80 ppm, ascorbic acid at a concentration ranging from 50 to 300 ppm, pre-gelatinized wheat flour at a concentration ranging from 0.1 to 4%, and malted wheat flour at a concentration ranging from 0.05 to 0.5%.

The improved process according to the invention is a method for manufacturing bread that is baked by final baking in an oven a pre-baked dough or bread, which is stored at room temperature or at a positive cold temperature. The dough is prepared with ingredients including, in addition to yeast, salt, flour, and water, a bread improver according to the present invention.

This process allows the production of pre-baked doughs that can be stored at room temperature for up to 7 days and at positive cold temperatures for a period of up to one month while maintaining an optimal freshness state.

In the context of the present invention, the term "oven" refers to ovens in which the heating of the dough is carried out by heat. Therefore, this term "oven" does not include microwave ovens. The oven is preferably a bakery oven, particularly of the rotary type, or a fixed hearth type, or in the form of a tunnel, but may also be any household oven capable of reaching the temperatures indicated inside the oven. Bakery ovens allow the baking of bread products at temperatures between 150°C and 280°C, optionally with steam injection into the oven.

The term "cooked product" refers to a product that is fully cooked and ready to be consumed. In the case of the traditional pre-cooked freezing process and in the case of the invention, the cooked product is therefore the product after final cooking, and consequently differs from the pre-cooked dough, which has undergone only a preliminary cooking.

According to the method of the invention, a fermented dough ready for baking corresponding to the final baked product is subjected to a pre-baking in an oven until its crumb is set and a crust is formed and colored. The pre-baked dough obtained in this way is cooled for storage. The fully baked product is obtained by a final baking of the pre-baked dough in the oven for a duration less than or equal to 10 minutes, and preferably between 3 and 7 minutes, at an oven temperature ranging from 200°C to 260°C. Advantageously, the final baking is carried out at a temperature of 200°C to 220°C.

Moreover, the final cooking does not require steam injection.

According to a certain method of preparation, the pre-cooking is carried out in an oven initially heated to a temperature ranging from 220°C to 280°C, and preferably from 210°C to 250°C. Preferably, the core temperature at the end of the pre-cooking is equal to or higher than 95°C.

In general, by "freshness of bread," we mean bread that is not spoiled, withered, or stale. In other words, bread that has retained its taste after baking, and whose crumb has maintained its softness, fermentation, and elasticity for a good chew and a pleasant mouthfeel.

In the present context, the terms "colored" and "coloration" refer to the browning of the crust during baking in an oven, this browning distinguishing notably the crust from the crumb.

In a useful manner, the cooling of the pre-fermented dough is carried out in such a way as to quickly reach a core temperature lower than or equal to 30°C, or even 40°C if the subsequent storage of the pre-fermented dough is performed at ambient temperature.

The pre-baked dough can thus be stored at 4°C for several days or even a month without its appearance or freshness being affected.

By definition, the dough is prepared with at least cereal flour, water (possibly added in the form of milk or other water-containing product), salt, and active baker's yeast.

According to the method of the invention, the dough is prepared from a composition comprising flour, water, salt, baker's yeast, and the bread improver of the invention.

Other ingredients can also be part of the dough's composition.

As an example, the following can be mentioned: at least one sugar involved in the so-called Maillard reaction in an amount exceeding that which is fermented by the yeast before pre-baking and sufficient to give color to the crust during pre-baking, and/or an enzymatic composition capable of providing at least one sugar involved in the so-called Maillard reaction in an amount exceeding that which is fermented by the yeast before pre-baking and sufficient to give color to the crust during pre-baking, and/or at least one protein involved in the mechanism of the so-called Maillard reaction, and/or at least one food stabilizer.

Maillard reactions are all reactions in which, under the action of heat, reducing sugars will form colored compounds with nitrogen-containing compounds. The most reactive sugars are those with five or six carbon atoms, but sugars with twelve carbon atoms, such as sucrose, lactose, and maltose, also participate in these reactions.

Thus, the ingredients of the dough can advantageously include at least one ingredient containing a sugar or a protein involved in Maillard-type reactions, this ingredient being selected from the group consisting of whey, lactose, glucose (i.e., dextrose), galactose, sucrose, and fructose.

Excess sugar involved in Maillard-type reactions, such as glucose or xylose, is at least partially, and possibly entirely, provided during the dough fermentation by at least one enzymatic preparation, and in particular such an enzymatic preparation containing at least one amyloglucosidase.

Other ingredients that act as enhancers can also be added during the dough preparation.

Thus, the ingredients of the dough may include one or more food stabilizers, preferably selected from stabilizers corresponding to cellulose derivatives, chemically or physically modified starches, gums, and pre-gelatinized flours, and in particular one or more food stabilizers selected from carboxymethylcellulose, xanthan gum, guar gum, and locust bean gum.

The dough can be prepared with ingredients including both: the additive of the invention, a food stabilizer; and an ingredient containing sugar or proteins involved in Maillard-type reactions, preferably whey and/or glucose.

Advantageously, the dough is prepared with ingredients comprising both: the additive of the invention, a food stabilizer, an enzyme source that provides sugars involved in Maillard-type reactions during dough fermentation, and an emulsifier.

The preferred emulsifiers are E472e and E472f (diacetyl-tartaric esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids).

The terms "malted cereal flours" or "malt of cereals," or "enzymatic extract of malt," are considered equivalents covered by the term "malted cereals." This rule also applies when the cereal is specified by its name (wheat, barley).

The present invention is particularly useful for baked products chosen from all types of bread, including special breads, such as viennoiserie, milk bread, and brioche. The weight of the baked product may notably range from 30 g to 2 kg. The invention is especially interesting for dough pieces weighing from 200 g to 2 kg. It does not concern pizza dough or croissants.

Thanks to this invention, a high-quality baked and fresh product can now be provided in 5 minutes or less. This is particularly interesting for sales in hot spots, but the invention also allows the baker to assist customers who urgently need a fresh bakery product after the day's on-site production has been exhausted. Finally, the invention is also beneficial for consumers who wish to obtain high-quality baked products by performing the final baking themselves.

The present invention also makes it possible to slice the bread in a shorter time after the final baking. For example, for an 850 g baked loaf, it can be sliced after 30 minutes of cooling (resuage) instead of 60 minutes.

The advantages of the present invention are more clearly illustrated in the following examples.

EXAMPLES Example of bread baked according to the invention (Test 4) and comparative examples (1, 2, and 3)

The manufacturing scheme of the ready-to-cook dough used for the four examples below is as follows:

Basic composition of the dough:

100% flour, 57% water, 1.9% compressed yeast, 1.65% salt. Any different recipe can also work (whole wheat bread, multi-grain, sourdough...).

The formulas for the pasta, according to the invention and the comparative examples, are expressed, as is usual in the technical field, in percentage of the baker's percentage, that is, in parts by weight of the ingredient per 100 parts by weight of the cereal flour used. They are given in Table 1 below.

Fresh bread yeast or compressed bread yeast is a yeast with approximately 30% dry matter, sold under the brand "L'HIRONDELLE"® blue by GIE LESAFFRE in 94701 Maisons Alfort, France.

Process:

Kneading: 3 minutes at first speed on a spiral mixer, and 8 minutes at second speed. Note that any type of mixer is suitable.

Dough temperature: 26°C

Division: into pieces of 950g, rounding, followed by 20 minutes of rest at room temperature, shaping, placing in an open mold, fermentation for 80 minutes at 30°C and 80% Relative Humidity (RH).

Pre-cooking: for 30 minutes in an oven initially heated to 250°C, then to 210°C with steam injection. The core temperature is between 95°C and 97°C.

Cooling for 1 to 1.5 hours at room temperature to reach 30°C in the center.

Each bread is packaged in a water-tight packaging under air.

Stored at 4°C for 7 days.

Final baking without steam for 5 minutes at 210°C (any type of oven), core temperature 10°C.

Cooling at room temperature for 20 minutes until the core temperature reaches 30°C.

Machine slicing and packaging under air. Storage at room temperature for 7 days and measurement of freshness in the crumb during this storage period.

Results/observations:

The baked breads were evaluated by a panel of experts. The results and observations noted are as follows: the crust is well-colored and does not show any scales either after pre-baking or after final baking. The final products according to the invention are slightly more colored than the comparative examples. The shrinkage of the dough during the final baking is less than 5% of the volume of the baked product. No significant difference was observed between the products according to the invention and those of the comparative examples. The crumb of the baked products does not show any white halos or crowns, as is the case with a completely baked product that has been frozen and then thawed. The bread baked according to the invention retains its freshness even after 7 days of storage at room temperature: a score of 5/10 compared to 2 and 3 for tests 1, 2, and 3. The combination of ingredients from test 2 and 3 shows in test 4 a superior synergistic effect in terms of bread freshness.

As illustrated in the examples, the present invention enables the consumer to have a high-quality product, freshly out of the oven, at any time of day, in just a few minutes of final cooking, and which remains fresh for several days of storage.

The following table (Table 1) summarizes the composition as well as the freshness note established for each of the tests conducted: Tableau 1

	g/100kg farine
étiquetage	Essai 1	Essai 2	Essai 3	Essai 4
Farine de blé prégélatinisé		2612,610		2612,610
Farine de blé	4986,560	2003,000	4979,06	1995,500
Farine de blé malté		360,000		360,000
Amyloglucosidase		10,950		10,950
Acide ascorbique	10,800	10,800	10,800	10,800
Exo amylase antirassissante maltogène			7,500	7,500
Alpha amylase	1,440	1,440	1,440	1,440
Xylanase	1,200	1,200	1,200	1,200
5000,000	5000,000	5000,000	5000,000
Résultat fraicheur de mie (notes de texture de mie d'un panel d'experts en analyse sensorielle, moyenne de 1 à 10, 10 étant la meilleure note) à 7j à température ambiante	2	2	3	5

Claims (16)

1. The use of a breadmaking improver in a method for making baked bread by final baking of precooked bread stored without freezing at room temperature for a period of up to 7 days, said breadmaking improver comprising:

   a. an enzyme composition comprising a maltogenic exoamylase, said maltogenic exoamylase being an enzyme classified under reference EC 3.2.1.1, that is able to degrade maltotriose to maltose and glucose, amyloglucosidase, alpha amylase and xylanase,

   b. ascorbic acid,

   c. pregelatinized wheat flour, and

   d. malted wheat flour,

   - maltogenic exoamylase being used at a content between 50 and 200 ppm,

   - amyloglucosidase being used at a content between 50 and 500 ppm,

   - alpha amylase being used at a content between 1 and 20 ppm,

   - xylanase being used at a content between 10 and 80 ppm,

   - ascorbic acid being used at a content between 50 and 300 ppm,

   - pregelatinized wheat flour being used at a content between 0.1 and 4%, and

   - malted wheat flour being used at a content between 0.05 and 0.5%,

   said contents being expressed in baker's percentage, i.e. relative to 100% of the flour in the kneading machine.
2. The use of a breadmaking improver in a method for making baked bread by final baking of precooked bread stored without freezing at 4°C for a period of up to 1 month, said breadmaking improver comprising:

   a. an enzyme composition comprising a maltogenic exoamylase, said maltogenic exoamylase being an enzyme classified under reference EC 3.2.1.1, that is able to degrade maltotriose to maltose and glucose, amyloglucosidase, alpha amylase and xylanase,

   b. ascorbic acid,

   c. pregelatinized wheat flour, and

   d. malted wheat flour,

   - maltogenic exoamylase being used at a content between 50 and 200 ppm,

   - amyloglucosidase being used at a content between 50 and 500 ppm,

   - alpha amylase being used at a content between 1 and 20 ppm,

   - xylanase being used at a content between 10 and 80 ppm,

   - ascorbic acid being used at a content between 50 and 300 ppm,

   - pregelatinized wheat flour being used at a content between 0.1 and 4%, and

   - malted wheat flour being used at a content between 0.05 and 0.5%,

   said contents being expressed in baker's percentage, i.e. relative to 100% of the flour in the kneading machine.
3. The use of a breadmaking improver according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the baked bread is selected from the group comprising crusty loaves, Vienna bread, milkbread, having a weight ranging from 30 g to 2 Kg.
4. A method for making baked bread by final baking of precooked bread stored without freezing at room temperature or at 4°C, characterized in that the precooked bread is prepared with ingredients comprising, in addition to flour, salt, baker's yeast and water, a breadmaking improver which comprises:

   a. an enzyme composition comprising a maltogenic exoamylase, said maltogenic exoamylase being an enzyme classified under reference EC 3.2.1.1, that is able to degrade maltotriose to maltose and glucose, amyloglucosidase, alpha amylase and xylanase,

   b. ascorbic acid,

   c. pregelatinized wheat flour, and

   d. malted wheat flour,

   - maltogenic exoamylase being used at a content between 50 and 200 ppm,

   - amyloglucosidase being used at a content between 50 and 500 ppm,

   - alpha amylase being used at a content between 1 and 20 ppm,

   - xylanase being used at a content between 10 and 80 ppm,

   - ascorbic acid being used at a content between 50 and 300 ppm,

   - pregelatinized wheat flour being used at a content between 0.1 and 4%, and

   - malted wheat flour being used at a content between 0.05 and 0.5%,

   said contents being expressed in baker's percentage, i.e. relative to 100% of the flour in the kneading machine.
5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that ingredients used to prepare bread additionally comprise:

   - at least one sugar that takes part in the Maillard reaction in an amount exceeding that which is fermented by the yeast before precooking and is sufficient to give color to the crust during precooking and/or an enzyme composition that is able to supply at least one sugar that takes part in the Maillard reaction in an amount exceeding that which is fermented by the yeast before precooking and is sufficient to give color to the crust during precooking, and/or at least one protein involved in the mechanisms of the Maillard reaction,

   - at least one food-grade stabilizing agent selected from cellulose derivatives, and gums such as xanthan, guar or carob gums and pregelatinized flours, and

   - at least one emulsifier.
6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that the ingredient containing at least one sugar and/or at least one protein taking part in the Maillard reaction is selected from the group of whey, lactose, glucose, galactose, sucrose, fructose.
7. The method according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

   a. making a formed, fermented dough ball that is ready to be cooked,

   b. recooking the dough ball in the oven until its crumb has set and its crust has formed and has changed color,

   c. cooling and storing the precooked dough ball,

   d. final baking in the oven at a temperature between 200 and 260°C for less than 10 minutes and preferably for 3 to 7 minutes.
8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the final baking is preferably carried out at a temperature between 200 and 220°C.
9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the final baking is carried out without steam injection.
10. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the precooking is carried out at a temperature between 220 and 280°C and preferably between 210 and 250°C.
11. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the internal temperature of the dough ball at the end of precooking is greater than or equal to 95°C.
12. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the precooked bread is cooled for storage until its internal temperature is less than or equal to 30°C for subsequent storage at 4°C.
13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that said storage is carried out at 4°C for a period of up to one month.
14. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the precooked bread is cooled for storage until its internal temperature is less than or equal to 40°C for subsequent storage at room temperature.
15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that said storage is carried out at room temperature for a period of up to 7 days.
16. The method according to one of claims 4 to 15, characterized in that the baked bread is selected from the group comprising crusty loaves, Vienna bread, and milkbread, having a weight ranging from 30 g to 2 Kg.