Enzymatic Process for Nixtamalization of Cereal Grains
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University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Faculty Publications in Food Science and Technology Food Science and Technology Department 2002 Enzymatic Process for Nixtamalization of Cereal Grains David S. Jackson University of Nebraska-Lincoln, [email protected] Deepak Sahai University of Nebraska-Lincoln, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/foodsciefacpub Part of the Food Science Commons Jackson, David S. and Sahai, Deepak, "Enzymatic Process for Nixtamalization of Cereal Grains" (2002). Faculty Publications in Food Science and Technology. 110. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/foodsciefacpub/110 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Food Science and Technology Department at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications in Food Science and Technology by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. 111111 1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 US006428828Bl (12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 6,428,828 BI Jackson et ai. (45) Date of Patent: Aug. 6,2002 (54) ENZYMATIC PROCESS FOR JP 41-1032693 A * 2/1999 NIXTAMALIZATION OF CEREAL GRAINS WO WO 00/45647 8/2000 (75) Inventors: David S. Jackson; Deepak Sahai, both OTHER PUBLICATIONS of Lincoln, NE (US) Katz et aI., "Traditional Maize Processing Techniques in the (73) Assignee: The Board of Regents of the New World". Science, vol. 184, pp. 765-773, May 1974. University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE Khan et aI., "Cor Tortillas: Evaluation of Corn Cooking (US) Procedures". Cereal Chemistry, vol. 59, pp. 279-284, Aug. 1982. ( *) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this Gomez et al. "Changes in Corn and Sorghum During Nix patent is extended or adjusted under 35 tamalization and Tortilla Baking". Journal of Food Science, U.S.c. 154(b) by 39 days. vol. 54, pp. 330-336, Apr. 1989. Steinkraus, Handbook of Indigenous Fermented Foods, 2nd (21) Appl. No.: 09/643,433 Ed., Marcel Dekker Inc., pp. 349-356, Jan. 1996.* (22) Filed: Aug. 22, 2000 * cited by examiner (51) Int. CI? .................................................. A23B 9/26 (52) U.S. CI. ............................................ 426/18; 426/52 Primary Examiner-Keith Hendricks (58) Field of Search .............................. 426/49, 52, 44, (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Senniger, Powers, Leavitt 426/46, 18, 28, 31, 15 & Roedel (56) References Cited (57) ABSTRACT U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS Disclosed are novel methods of producing food composi tions by the use of an enzymatic digestion of the component 5,395,637 A 3/1995 Reec .......................... 426/549 parts of whole portions of cereal grains, and grain materials, 5,401,522 A 3/1995 Reeg .......................... 426/549 to impart advantageous qualities to the resulting flour and 5,532,013 A 7/1996 Martinez-Bustos et al. 426/496 dough related products produced therefrom. The present 5,558,898 A 9/1996 Sunderland ................. 426/626 5,652,010 A 7/1997 Gimmler et al. ............ 426/549 invention specifically relates to the fields of making flour 5,662,901 A * 9/1997 Tobey, Jr. et al. ......... 424/94.2 and dough, used for totillas, corn chips, totilla chips, snacks, 6,056,990 A 5/2000 Delrue et al. ............... 426/622 half-products and related products from the component parts and whole portions of cereal grains, and related materials. FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS JP 41-1000115 A * 1/1999 33 Claims, No Drawings US 6,428,828 Bl 1 2 ENZYMATIC PROCESS FOR The preferred grain for use to produce tortillas and related NIXTAMALIZATION OF CEREAL GRAINS products is corn or corn meal. With corn the alkaline cooking and steeping loosens the pericarp or outside bran Part of this invention was made with governmental layer of the corn kernel from the endosperm so that water support under BES-9817050 awarded by the National Sci 5 can reach the starch and the pericarp can be removed. ence Foundation under the Environmental Protection Conventional nixtamalization processes for producing Agency/National Science Foundation partnership for envi fresh masa dough or instant masa flour have several disad ronmental research program. The government may have vantages. For example, the time required for steeping places certain rights to this invention. production limits on equipment and increases the space 10 requirements for the manufacturing facility. Additionally, FIELD OF THE INVENTION the process uses large amounts of water and generates large The present invention relates to the fields of making flour quantities of effluent waste water that must be treated prior and dough, used for producing flat breads such as tortillas, to disposal. The waste water from the traditional nixtamal roti; snacks such as corn chips, tortilla chips; fried puffed ization is highly alkaline as large amounts of alkaline lime snacks, half-product and related products, from the compo 15 solution are used to cook, steep and hydrate whole kernels nent parts and whole portions of cereal grains, grain of corn. The highly alkaline waste streams (pH approxi materials, and non-cereal materials such as dry edible beans, mately 9-12) also have a high biological and chemical oilseeds, tubers, bananas, carrots, and related materials. oxygen demand (BOD/COD) values and are a potential More particularly, this invention relates to a method for the pollutant because of their composition and characteristics. production of flour and dough through the use of an enzy 20 Nejayote also contains large amounts of dissolved pericarp, matic digestion process whereby component parts and whole soluble/dispersed starches and other corn material that can portions of cereal grains, grain materials, and non-cereal not be ecologically discharged into water ways or municipal materials such as dry beans, tubers and other food materials waste water systems. Nejayote has a chemical oxygen can be used as the starting material. The method of this demand (COD) of approximately 2500 mg/liter, a biological invention imparts advantageous qualities to the resulting 25 oxygen demand (BOD) of approximately 8100 mg/liter and flour and dough such that it can be conveniently processed a suspended solids content of approximately 20,000 and sheeted, cut or extruded using common food processing mg/liter. Nejayote also contains approximately 310 mg/liter equipment to produce a variety of foods and related products of nitrogen and approximately 180 mg/liter of phosphorus. produced therefrom. Commercial alkaline corn facilities discharge alkaline 30 wastewater in large sedimentation tanks or lagoons for BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION disposal. The wastewater cleaning operation is accom plished by sedimentation and microbial degradation of corn Corn tortillas, tortilla chips, corn chips, taco shells, and solids. The wastewater, due to its alkalinity and solids burrito wraps and other related products are prepared by content, cannot be directly discharged in the environmental sheeting, cutting and baking and/or frying of corn dough 35 water streams before proper neutralization and clean-up. pieces. These products are prepared from corn masa flour, Generally, the manufacturing facility must bear the cost of which is instant masa flour which has been produced from treating the waste water prior to discharge. nixtamalized corn or corm meal and rehydrated with water to form a dough, or stone ground corn dough/masa, which is Alkaline waste and wastewater disposal is a major con dough or flour prepared by stone grinding of nixtamalized 40 cern during commercial nixtamalization. Alkaline cooking, corn. steeping and washing of the corn solids causes partitioning Traditionally, the production of instant masa flour or fresh of corn solids between corn material and waste water. Loss corn masa dough material involves the process of nixtamal of corn solids i.e. yield loss during nixtamalization and cost ization. Nixtamalization involves the following essential of effluent processing are considerable. In a commerical steps: whole kernel corn is cooked at a temperature below or 45 operation, corn solid loss has been estimated to vary at boiling for a period of time in a medium which usually between 5 to 14% depending on the type of corn. (Katz et contains an alkaline agent, such as water containing lime aI., (1974) Science 184:765; Khan et aI., (1982) Cereal [Ca(OH)2l The time and temperature of the cook often Chern. 59:279-284). The effluents generated during alkaline depends upon the hardness of the grain. Harder grain cooking of corn known as nejayote are potential pollutants requires longer cook time and/or higher temperatures. 50 because of their composition and characteristics. Thereafter the cooked corn is allowed to steep (soak) for a In recent years a number of processes have been devel period of time in the liquid, for example for about three to oped for improving the efficiency of nixtamal and masa flour about fourteen hours. After steeping, the cook/steep liquor, production. Many of these processes attempt to shorten the which is the liquid medium in which the corn was cooked cooking or steeping time or vary the concentration of and steeped and is also known as nejayote, is drained and the 55 additives to increase production rates. One example is retained grain is washed to remove the alkaline agent and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,558,898 to Sunderland. This other solubilized/dispersed materials. The processed patent discloses a process for producing masa flour where (cooked and steeped) grain is known as nixtamal. Nixtamal the whole grain is partially cooked in a hot alkaline solution is stone ground in a traditional stone grinder to produce fresh to partially gelatinize the starch and loosen the bran. corn dough also known as masa. To produce instant masa 60 Thereafter, the grain is debranned, flash dried and milled. flour, nixtamal is coarsely ground, dehydrated and milled Further developments in the production of masa and masa into flour often referred to as instant masa flour.