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SPICE EXTRACTS, CUSTOMISED SPICE LIQUID SOLUTIONS & OLEORESINS

When developing food products that meet consumers’ desire for good taste, extracts can achieve flavours that plain spices and herbs cannot. Extracts are obtained by distillation and contain the desirable flavour components of spices and herbs, offering more consistent flavours than fresh or dried herbs in some packaged foods.

There are two main categories of extracts: essential oils and oleoresins. Essential oils are distilled or expressed from seeds, fruits, roots, stems, or leaves of plants. They capture the complete aroma as highly concentrated volatile components but may not represent the full flavour of the spice or herb because they lack non-volatile constituents. The average volatile oil content of spices and herbs ranges from as low as 0.4% in basil to as high as 15% in nutmeg; for cinnamon, thyme, and dill, it falls between 1% and 3%. Oleoresins, on the other hand, are viscous, complex mixtures of volatile and non-volatile flavour components derived by extraction. They typically contain essential oils, non-volatile substances, fats, waxes, and pigments, representing the complete spice or herb profile in a concentrated, oil-soluble liquid form and capturing potentially bioactive components of interest to the health and nutrition community.

Depending on the food product, spice and herb extracts can be combined with other ingredients to enhance flavour. They can also be diluted to standardise or solubilise the natural flavour or sprayed dry on carrier material for dry applications. The amount of extract used in a food product depends partly on its relative strength. For example, ground ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe, Zingiberaceae) contains about 1% to 5% volatile oil, whereas ginger oleoresin contains 30% to 50% volatile oil, and ginger oil contains 100% volatile oil. Spice and herb extracts deliver flavour components in versatile forms for a variety of purposes.

 

FSL offers a range of spice extracts and customised spice liquid solutions namely:

  • Asafoetida Extracts
  • Saffron Extracts
  • Cocoa Extracts
  • Herb Oleoresins

These concentrated solutions are cost-effective and can be used as alternative solutions for various applications, such as:

  • Coatings
  • Dry Rubs
  • Glazes
  • Marinades
  • Sauces
  • Soups
  • Stews

 

 

We specialise in creating high-quality spice extracts and customised spice liquid solutions that can enhance a variety of food products.

To learn more about why FSL is your ideal partner, contact us at meatfsl@foodspecialities.com.

 

OLEORESINS FOR MEAT & CULINARY APPLICATIONS

The demand for natural food products has surged in the Middle East due to heightened health awareness. “The Natural Food & Beverage Market is still poised to grow for the next 6 months to five years and is driven by the main factors of health, food safety and environmental concerns. The growth of natural and organic food in the region is 39% in 2020, compared to 11% growth for retail value globally,” shared Monique Naval, Senior Analyst, Euromonitor International. 4

Oleoresins are concentrated extracts derived from spices, plants and herbs, used as additives in foods. It consists of non-volatile components that do not evaporate.

4 Source: https://organicandnatural.com/2021-organic-and-natural-trends-in-the-middle-east/

(non-volatile) and those that evaporate (volatile). These components act as flavours and aromas where oleoresin has a taste of 5-20 times stronger than the original spices.

Oleoresins are characterized by their high potency, allowing them to be used in small dosages. They are advantageous wherever spices are used, such as pepper, ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric. They are also used in meat canning, sauces, seasonings and other meat and culinary applications where the appearance of spice is important. Its usage is to ensure standardization in taste and consistency in flavour and colour, imparting a pungent aroma and flavour to products. Hence, oleoresins are a valuable ingredient in the food and beverage industry. 5

These ingredients are now widely used in the global food industry due to their convenience regarding shelf life, size and transportation. They have high storage stability and a shelf life of one year without loss in quality due to their low moisture content. They occupy only 1-10% of the space required by ground spices and are more heat-stable than regular spices. These specific advantages make them widely used in European countries and USA.

Advantages of Oleoresin:

  • Natural and cost-effective
  • Quality consistency
  • Low microbiological load compared to raw / ground spice
  • Longer shelf life
  • Convenient to use

Applications of Oleoresin:

  • Enhancing flavour and maintaining product quality in meat and culinary process
  • Seasoning mixes for fresh sausages, incorporating pepper, capsicum, ginger,
    nutmeg and herbs
  • Using cardamom and coriander oleoresins for dry sausages and pickled meats

It offers the same flavour profile and nutrient yield as the source product but with up to 20 times the flavour intensity. Being concentrated, they are cost-effective, enabling manufacturers to produce high-quality products at better prices.

FSL provides oleoresins tailored to a variety of needs. Developed by our global team of meat and culinary experts using the best equipment and extraction techniques, these products are derived from their original sources and crafted as ingredients that can be easily incorporated into different applications.

To explore the world of oleoresins, contact us at meatfsl@foodspecialities.com.

 

5 Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0924224422000589