Umami taste characteristics of water extract of Doenjang, a Korean soybean paste: Low-molecular acidic peptides may be a possible clue to the taste

Mee-Ra Rhyu; Eun-Young Kim

doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.01.128

Umami taste characteristics of water extract of Doenjang, a Korean soybean paste: Low-molecular acidic peptides may be a possible clue to the taste

Food Chem. 2011 Aug 1;127(3):1210-5. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.01.128. Epub 2011 Feb 1.

Authors

Mee-Ra Rhyu¹, Eun-Young Kim²

Affiliations

¹ Functional Food Technology Research Group, Korea Food Research Institute, Baekhyun-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-746, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: mrrhyu@kfri.re.kr.
² Functional Food Technology Research Group, Korea Food Research Institute, Baekhyun-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 463-746, Republic of Korea.

PMID: 25214116
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.01.128

Abstract

We investigated the taste characteristics of doenjang water extract (DWE) for component compounds that contribute to its taste. A 1% DWE solution elicited the highest umami taste ratings in a taste profile test. A 3% solution of DWE was used as substitute for 9.4% of monosodium glutamate in a taste soup base, and it masked the bitter taste of hydrolysed animal protein when mixed in solution. DWE was fractionated, based on molecular weights, and fraction IV (F-IV; 1000>MW⩾500) had the highest peptide contents and elicited the strongest umami taste. The acidic peptide fraction of F-IV elicited the strongest umami taste. The major bound-type amino acids in DWE, F-IV and the acidic peptide fraction were Glu and Asp. These data show that the umami taste characteristics were a result of the low molecular weight acidic peptides naturally produced during the fermentation of soybeans.

Keywords: Doenjang; Low molecular weight peptides; Soybean paste; Taste characteristics; Umami.