Consumer's perception and expected liking of labels of burgers with sodium reduction and addition of mushroom flavor enhancer.

This study investigated consumers' perception of labels of burgers with sodium reduction and/or addition of mushroom flavor enhancer. Six visual stimuli were created using a factorial design with sodium content (regular, sodium-reduced, and sodium-reduced plus health claim) and flavor enhancer (monosodium glutamate (MSG) and mushroom extract) as factors. Consumers answered an attitudinal questionnaire and evaluated the stimuli through expected liking and check-all-that-apply (CATA) questions. Three consumers' clusters were identified, which associated positive attributes to labels of burgers with mushroom flavor enhancer and negative attributes to labels of MSG-burgers, regardless of sodium content. The main positive drivers of liking were "I would buy", "attractive", "innovative", "tasty", and "contain fewer additives", which were associated with burgers with mushroom flavor enhancer, while "contain additives", "processed", "artificial", "unhealthy", and "not attractive" were the negative drivers of liking that should be modified in a reformulation to increase liking. This study provides valuable information for the development of healthier burgers and their positioning in the market.

Umami Ingredient: Flavor enhancer from shiitake (Lentinula edodes) byproducts.

An alternative use of shiitake stipes, usually treated as waste, was proposed for the production of a powder ingredient, rich in umami compounds, aiming its application in food. The extraction of umami compounds was optimized through the Response Surface Methodology (RSM), in order to obtain an extract with high umami taste intensity. From the optimized condition, a comparative analysis of shiitake stipes dehydration method was performed. Stipes were dehydrated by hot air drying (HD) and freeze drying (FD), submitted to extraction and the umami compounds in the extracts were compared. The comparative analysis showed that the 5' - nucleotides are more sensitive to prolonged heating, while the release of free amino acids (FAA) was favored by hot air drying. The HD samples extract showed higher Equivalent Umami Concentration (EUC). The spray drying of the HD samples extract allowed the production of a newly powder ingredient rich in umami compounds (Umami Ingredient) that can be applied in diverse food matrices. Due to the presence of umami compounds, Umami Ingredient can be a potential alternative to help in the process of sodium reduction by enhancing food flavor.