Pectin is a complex natural carbohydrate found in the plant
cell wall. Due to strong gelling and thickening properties,
pectin has been used extensively in a variety of foods in
order to control the texture and rheology. In addition, pectin
has recently received great attention as a soluble fiber. Thus,
beneficial health effects have been reported, such as antiinflammatory,
anti-cancer, and hypocholesterolemic activities
(1,2). Nonetheless, the practical use of pectin, other than as
a gelling and thickening agent, has been limited in the food
industry due to a rheological impact on food quality. Thus,there is a challenge to extend the use of pectin beyond
traditional applications.
Trials using pectin as a fat replacer have been conducted
in order to produce food products with reduced fat and caloric
contents. A pectin gel was formulated using carrageenan to
produce low-fat sausage (3). Also, low-fat Manchego cheeses
were prepared using a commercial fat replacer made using
low methoxyl pectin and sucrose (4). More recently, pectinenriched
materials from apples were evaluated as a fat
replacer in cookies (5). However, there is still a lack of detailed
information on the functional performance of pectin in a
food system. Furthermore, it would be worthwhile to
further investigate the potential functionality of pectin as a
fat replacer in a wide variety of foods.