Gluten-Free Bakery Marvels: Emulsifiers and Hydrocolloids in Bread and Beyond

Ever tried high-quality gluten-free bakery products?

If you have, chances are, you might have noticed only a subtle difference, if at all. But how do gluten-free bakeries manage to do that?

The secret lies in two ingredients, namely emulsifiers and hydrocolloids.

Before we dive deeper into the mystical powers of these two ingredients, it's time to understand how gluten-free bakery products are different.

How are gluten-free bakery products different?

To know the difference, it's important to understand gluten's role in bakery products. According to Colorado State University, it imparts elasticity and fluffy texture, which consumers crave in bakery products.

In the absence of gluten, these characteristics are induced by emulsifiers and hydrocolloids. Emulsifiers, for example, blend various ingredients, whereas hydrocolloids improve bread texture and stability (longer shelf life, anyone?). Besides these, there are numerous functions of both these ingredients covered in the section below.

Difference Between Emulsifiers and Hydrocolloids

Before we highlight the various applications, it's time to know the difference between both.

Examples of emulsifiers in gluten-free bakery products include Lecithin and Xanthan gum. The former is used to combine water and fat to form an emulsion. Later is used as a gluten replacement to impart stickiness to the dough, which leads to better texture.

Certain hydrocolloids do act as stabilizing agents, that is, emulsifiers, but not all of them. Common hydrocolloids used in gluten-free bakery products include Xanthan gum, Guar gum, Locust bean gum etc. The functions of each of them are different like, Xanthan gum improves bread texture and increases elasticity, while Guar gum imparts volume. Locust bean gum is responsible for thickening the dough.

As you can see, the applications of hydrocolloids and emulsifiers are different. To truly understand their impact and how they improve gluten-free bakery products, check the section below. 

Role of Emulsifiers and hydrocolloids in gluten free bakery products:

Since both of them act differently, we will cover applications of each one of them separately.

Emulsifiers:

1. Binding agent

Bakery products contain various ingredients that don't bind well, primarily oil and moisture content. If they don't bind well, it's not possible to get that glossy and smooth texture on the outside. This is where emulsifiers come to the rescue. They bind such ingredients to give the right texture to bakery products.

2. Improve shelf life

Emulsifiers not only mix the ingredients but keep the resultant mixture stable. This prevents the bakery products from disintegrating or degrading anytime soon, thus increasing the shelf life. 

3. Aid moisture retention

Bakery products need the right amount of moisture. Too moist, and the taste and texture will mellow down. Too dry, and they will harden.

Emulsifiers stabilize the ingredients to retain moisture in bakery products and reduce the dough density. With the right moisture retention, bakery products certainly taste better for longer.

4. Aid volume expansion

Emulsifiers induce more air in the dough during the mixing. That results in volume expansion, resulting in fluffier bakery products. 

Isn't that how we like our bakery products?

You bet!

5. Strengthen dough

Usually, gluten strengthens dough strands on kneading. So, when baking gluten-free products, we need something that can produce such strength to ensure the structural integrity of the bakery products and avoid disintegration.

Emulsifiers come to the rescue here as well. They result in better aggregation and aid cross-linking, which leads to better dough strength.

6. Increase aeration

As highlighted above, emulsifiers induce air bubbles, increasing aeration.

With so many applications of gluten being replaced by emulsifiers, they are a must for baking gluten-free products.

Hydrocolloids:

1. Structuring agents

Gluten usually increases the elasticity of bakery items, which allows the baker to mold them into the desired shape. In the absence of gluten, molding these items isn't easy because the absence of strong protein bonds can cause them to break. This is where hydrocolloids help us out by imparting elasticity and making the dough stretchy.

The result is you can mold gluten-free dough into any shape and structure.

2. Avoids deformation

Shaping dough into pastries, cakes, and bread loafs is a basic baking endeavor. Since dough possesses rheology properties, the dough will try to regain its previous shape to some extent once pressure is removed. In usual bakery products, gluten forms a viscoelastic network to keep air trapped inside, which reduces dough rheology, helping it retain shape.

In gluten-free bakery products, this job is done by Hydrocolloids, which aid gas retention within the dough, resulting in shape retention.

3. Thicken the dough

When coming in contact with moisture, hydrocolloids swell, which increases the volume and thickens the dough. Since in traditional dough, bonds formed because of gluten help achieve this, hydrocolloids once again replace gluten in this regard.

4. Reduce fat content

Hydrocolloids form thin films which reduce the oil absorbed by the dough. It means that bakery products that contain hydrocolloids have less fat.

So, by using hydrocolloids in gluten free bakery products, you can cut down on gluten and fats.

Isn't that a win-win?

You bet!

Which Gluten-Free Bakery Products use Emulsifiers and Hydrocolloids?

Almost every gluten-free bakery product uses an emulsifier hydrocolloid, or both. Most noteworthy examples are:

1. Layer cakes

Layer cakes usually use Guar gum as the hydrocolloid, which increases the firmness of the dough. As for emulsifiers, usually, Xanthan gum is used to improve dough quality.

2. Bread

Bread usually uses HPMC, which acts as a hydrocolloid and emulsifier. It increases the bread's volume and reduces its firmness, helping shape the bread loaf right.

Note:

Various other hydrocolloids, like Xanthan gum and Guar gum, can also be used in bread, depending on the type of effect needed.

3. Muffins

Gluten-free muffins are usually made from maize along with Protein isolates as hydrocolloids and Nonfat milk powder as emulsifiers. According to this research report, the former provides puffiness to muffins, while the latter contributes to hydration and strength.

Tips to use emulsifiers and hydrocolloids in bakery products

Of course, to extract such properties from emulsifiers and hydrocolloids, it's important to use them correctly. The tips below will help you do so.

1. Mix them well

Unless and until they come in contact with the ingredients in the mixture or the dough, it's tough for hydrocolloids and emulsifiers to act appropriately. Therefore, only by mixing them their respective properties are triggered.

2. Use in proper proportion

Hydrocolloids have a certain odor of their own. Additionally, they are not as stable as emulsifiers. Therefore, use them excessively, and you run the risk of their odor masking that of natural ingredients or the entire mixture turning unstable.

Similarly, excessive consumption of emulsifiers can lead to an upset stomach. Therefore, it's always important to use them in proper proportion.

3. Choose the right one

As you can see from the examples above, only specific hydrocolloids and emulsifiers can help you attain the desired effect. Therefore, you must plan well before adding any of them to the mix.

Conclusion

Emulsifiers and hydrocolloids are indeed the magic ingredients that can make gluten-free bakery products taste as good as gluten-based ones. Guide above highlights not only what they do but also which ones are more commonly used. Use them right, and you won't even notice the gluten is missing.

FAQs

Is Xanthan gum a hydrocolloid substance?

Yes, it is a hydrocolloid derived from the fermentation of starch. It has gelling or thickening properties, which is why it is used in gluten free baking products.

How much emulsifier to use in baking?

Each recipe requires a different amount of emulsifier, but a limit you shouldn't breach is more than 20% of the oil content in the recipe.

Is hydrocolloid made of gelatin?

Gelatin is a hydrocolloid, but not all hydrocolloids are made of gelatin. 

What is the binder in gluten free bread?

Usually, binding agents are HMPC or Xanthan gum. Besides working as binding agents, they also work as thickening agents. Due to these binders, the volume of the bread increases.

What is the binding agent in gluten-free flour?

Gluten-free flour usually consists of Xanthan gum, Guar gum, or Psyllium husk. Either of those provides a fluffy texture to dough, retains the structural integrity of dough, and reduces the dough rheology.

What is a gluten-free dough enhancer?

Gluten free dough enhancer is a substance that improves the texture and dough life without having to rely on gluten.

Sources:

https://goodflour.co/blogs/the-good-flour-blog/frequently-asked-questions-about-baking-with-gluten-free-flour#

https://www.outrageousbaking.com/whats-the-difference-between-wheat-based-and-gluten-free-baked-goods/

https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/nutrition-food-safety-health/gluten-free-baking-9-376/

https://sunflourbakingcompany.com/blogs/news/gluten-free-bakery-goods

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-0-387-75284-6_9

/06/calculate-emulsifier/