This ingredient can make delicious chocolate with less added sugar

Enjoyed without excess, chocolate is full of nutrients that contribute to the proper functioning of the body. It contains in particular polyphenols, antioxidants of plant origin, which help reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure. To benefit from its antioxidant action, it is better to choose dark chocolate good quality rather than milk chocolate, which is less rich in polyphenols.

Rice and oat flours, alternatives to the sugar present in chocolate?

Despite its interesting virtues, chocolate remains a very sweet food that should be consumed in moderation. In a recent study published in the Journal of Food and SciencesAmerican researchers studied different ingredients to reduce the sugar content of chocolate.

For this research, scientists tested rice and oat flour, which contain fine-grained starches, to replace sugar in chocolate. “Starch is still a carbohydrate, so there are not fewer calories, but there is an overall reduction in added sugar content, which may have health benefits.”noted John Hayes, professor of food sciences at Penn State and corresponding author of the study.

During the work, two blind taste tests took place. The first consisted of evaluating whether the 66 participants distinguished a difference between six varieties of chocolate:

• a “control” chocolate with a normal sugar content of 54%;
• four reduced-sugar versions with reductions of 25% or 50% and additions of oat or rice flour;
• a 54% sugar chocolate with reduced refining time to test if grinding time affected texture.

According to the volunteers, chocolates with 25% reduced sugar content and chocolate with reduced refining time were similar to the control chocolate. Nevertheless, they estimated that the texture and flavor of chocolates with 50% reduced sugar content were significantly different. Participants also said that rice flour chocolate had “a chalkier texture” while chocolates containing oat flour were described as “smoother, softer and creamier.”

Oat flour: a 25% reduction in sugars added to chocolate

The second test brought together 90 people. Everyone received a square of chocolate reduced sugar content (25%) made from oat and rice flour, a classic chocolate and a chocolate made from 54% sugar. Volunteers were then asked to rate the flavors, textures and sweet tastes of each chocolate tested.

The researchers found that chocolates made from rice flour were liked significantly less than the normal control chocolate. However, the oat flour sample was not judged to be different from the control chocolate. In some cases, consumers even found it better. Oat flour could therefore be a solution to reduce the presence of added sugars in chocolate. “SIf we use oat flour, our results suggest that we can reduce added sugars in chocolate by 25%, or a 13.5% reduction in total sugar (…) The addition of oat flour is unlikely to have a significant impact on consumer acceptability, which is excellent news.”said Kai Kai Ma, a doctoral candidate in food sciences at Penn State and co-author of the paper.