Gelling properties of acid-induced tofu (soybean curd): Effects of acid type and nano-fish bone.

The effects of different types of acid coagulants and nano fish bone (NFB) additives on the characteristics of tofu were investigated using texture analyzers, SEM, FT-IR, and other techniques. The breaking force and penetration distance, in descending order, were found in the tofu induced by glucono-d-lactone (GDL) (180.27 g and 0.75 cm), citric acid (152.90 g and 0.74 cm), lactic acid (123.33 g and 0.73 cm), and acetic acid (69.84 g and 0.58 cm), respectively. The syneresis of these tofu samples was in the reverse order (35.00, 35.66, 39.66, and 44.50%). Lightness and whiteness were not significantly different among the different samples. Regardless of the acid type, the soluble calcium content in the soybean milk was significantly increased after adding NFB. As a result, the breaking force and penetration distance of all tofu samples increased significantly, but the syneresis decreased. Compared with tofu coagulated by other acids, GDL tofu formed a more uniform and dense gel network maintained by the highest intermolecular forces (especially hydrophobic interactions). Regarding the secondary structure, the lowest percentage of α-helix (22.72%) and, correspondingly, the highest ß-sheet (48.32%) and random coil (18.81%) were noticed in the GDL tofu. The effects of NFB on the tofu characteristics can be explained by the changes in the gel network, intermolecular forces, and secondary structure, which were in line with the acid type. The characteristics of acid-induced tofu can be most synergistically improved by coagulation with GDL and NFB.

Gelation properties of tofu induced by different coagulants: Effects of molecular interactions between nano-sized okara dietary fiber and soybean proteins.

Gelation of soybean proteins with different coagulates as affected by okara nano-sized dietary fiber (NDF) were investigated. As compared with the MgCl2 tofu, the tofu induced by glocono-δ-lactone was softer with higher moisture and denser microstructure. As the volumetric ratio of NDF increased, pH, viscosity, particle size, and zeta potential of the NDF soymilk steadily increased. Regardless of coagulate type, tofu proteins' prevalence of α-helix + ß-turn increased with the NDF ratio up to 40 % while ß-sheet + random coil decreased. At the same time, intermolecular interactions (predominate hydrophobic interaction) significantly decreased, leading to form more porous structures in the two types of tofu. Accordingly, yield and moisture of tofu increased gradually with the NDF ratio, water holding capacity increased and then decreased, hardness decreased continuously. Results suggested that NDF affected the secondary structure and intermolecular interactions of soymilk proteins, which was independent of coagulate.

Effects of nano fish bone on gelling properties of tofu gel coagulated by citric acid.

Tofu gel was made by using citric acid (0.14%) in combination with varied volumetric ratios (e.g., 0-4%) of nano fish bone (NFB). The gel properties were investigated by colorimetry, penetration tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. As the volumetric ratio increased from 0 to 3%, the soluble calcium concentrations of soymilk linearly increased from 1.78 to 6.42 mg/mL. Correspondently, yield, moisture and texture values of the tofu gel increased continuously (p < 0.05) while syneresis and whiteness decreased (p < 0.05). Furthermore, ionic bonds, hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds increased by 140%, 40% and 10%, respectively. With the addition of NFB, the α-helices of the soybean proteins changed to ß-sheets and random coil structures. Additionally, the tofu gel network became more orderly and denser. The results confirmed that NFB can be utilized as a functional coagulant ingredient to improve the properties of acid-induced tofu gels.