Effect of substitution of aspartame for sucrose on instrumental texture profile of hydrocolloids gelled systems

The effect of substituting aspartame (0.04–0.16% w/w) for sucrose (5–25% w/w) on the instrumental texture profile of three hydrocolloid gelled systems: -carrageenan, gellan gum and -carrageenan/locust bean gum at three different concentrations (0.3, 0.75 and 1.2% w/w) was studied. In gellan gels hardness and chewiness increased with sucrose concentration but not so in either -carrageenan or -carrageenan/LBG gels where no changes in these parameters were detected. Addition of sucrose also produced a small but significant increase in cohesiveness in gellan gels. The effect of sucrose concentration on all texture parameters of gellan gels was higher as gellan concentration increased. Aspartame addition did not affect TPA parameters. TPA results obtained for aspartame gels did not differ from those corresponding to the unsweetened gels considered here. Summarising the above information it can be said that substituting aspartame for sucrose in this type of sweetened gel changed the textural properties and that the changes produced depended on the hydrocolloid type and concentration and on the sucrose concentration replaced.