[Fine Chemicals] Q&A roundup on compound food additives

For light, flaky pastry products, match with oil-loving emulsifiers with HLB ≤ 7; for moisture-retaining, water-binding products, match with water-loving emulsifiers with HLB ≥ 7. The HLB values of more than 100 emulsifiers are weighed and matched only in your head. Take food thickeners, for example. The principles are: Classification Functional characteristics Best suited for baked goods, fermented steamed rice/flour products, starch products for thickening and gravy, quick-frozen rice/flour products, hot-processed foods, cold-processed foods, etc. Thickening, strengthening gluten, and resistance—plus dough resistance, shaping the dough's elasticity or water-holding capacity, etc.—the best star single agent plus the best synergistic effect and benefit. Take leavening agents: acidic, alkaline, neutral; their melting point, reaction speed at room temperature, reaction speed at different temperatures, neutralization value, leavening strength, loosening performance (the strength of producing carbon dioxide and ammonia gas), etc. Take food preservatives: Chemical, microbial, clean-label, natural Product type: baked goods; starch products; rice products; quick-frozen rice/flour products Product process: baked products (150°–300°); steamed/cooked products (100°); raw dough products (0°–30°); quick-frozen products (-18°–40°), etc. The characteristics of colonies—aerobic plate count, mold, bacteria, spore-forming bacteria, Gram-positive/negative bacteria, etc.—and what factors and environments they fear and dislike (raw materials; pH; water activity; temperature; humidity, etc.). Also, use a hurdle-system approach to comprehensively consider the scenarios where compound additives are applied: Improve the formula Upgrade the process Match the technology Balance the product Product taste and mouthfeel: flaky, fragrant, sweet, crisp, chewy, springy, sticky, loose, savory, salty, sour, spicy, soft, moist, etc. The formula's plasticity, mechanical extensibility, mechanical or manual pressure/resistance; or increasing the formula's gas-holding capacity, elasticity, toughness, stretchability, stickiness, extensibility, plasticity, flakiness, etc. In the process: leavening, Maillard reaction threshold, gluten strengthening, pressure boosting, boil resistance, etc. The product's color and appearance, or the natural wheat/rice aroma; or the flavor and taste; or the shape—tall, short, long, square, round, thick, red, green, etc. Whether the product needs emulsification, gluten strengthening, whitening, boil resistance, moisture retention, water binding, freshness retention, mold prevention, antioxidant, flakiness enhancement, flavor enhancement, color enhancement, or freeze resistance, etc. See Dr. Du Dechun's original works such as "Du Dechun's Eight Major Dough Systems" and "How to Keep Baked Goods, Starch Products, Rice/Flour Products, and Quick-Frozen Products Fresh, Strengthen Gluten, Resist Staling, and Optimize, Improve, and Upgrade Formulas, Processes, and Technologies." Follow the national standards and don't cross the red line: GB 26687-2011 National Food Safety Standard: General Standard for Compound Food Additives GB2760, GB14880, GB 30616-2020, and other food codes.