The effect of fat substitutes on the emulsion stability and sensory characteristics of reduced fat sesame paste/date syrup blends (reduced fat Halwa-Ardeh)

Halwa-Ardeh is a traditional food in Iran and Middle East countries, which is produced by crushing the dehulled sesame seeds and then mixing with a proper sweetener such as grape concentrate, date syrup, and honey. The oil content of this product is on the average of 57-65% (w/w). In this research, the effect of different levels of fat substitutes including guar gum (of 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2%), Xanthan (0.01, 0.015 and 0.02%), and modified starch (0.75, 1.25 and 1.75%) on the emulsion stability and sensory characteristics (oiliness, firmness, spreadability, adhesiveness, color, mouth coating, taste, and total acceptance) of reduced fat sesame paste/date syrup blends have been investigated. The results showed that all fat replacers at each substitution level (except for 0.02% substitution of xanthan gum) increased the emulsion stability of samples in comparison with the control. In addition, the sensory evaluation by panelists showed that the effect of fat substitutes at each level of substitution on sensory properties of many samples was not significant (α=5%), but all fat replacers improved the spreadability and firmness of samples compared to the control.