Panic in Congee: Is Thickener Safe?

Recently, many people have turned an article on porridge on WeChat, saying that the porridge on the street is an industrial thickener and there is a panic.

Some media reported that the use of thickeners in porridge shops had also moved out of the “Sanitary Standards for the Use of Food Additives” GB2760-2007, and invited a “National Level 2 Dietitian” to explain. This report is not scientific. First of all, the national standards they quoted are obsolete. The “Standard for the Use of Food Additives” GB2760-2011 was formally implemented on June 20, 2011, and the standard has been repealed on its own. In addition, national standards do not stipulate the intake of additives, and it is even more impossible to specify whether “breakfast” can add additives.

Thickener, see you every day

Thickening sounds scary, but it's actually happening every day.

Have you met the egg soup in the cafeteria or restaurant? Experienced chefs use a single egg to make a large bucket of soup look like they are floating many eggs. The secret is to weigh it down. The wonderful changes caused by starch, scientifically called gelatinization, make the soup thicker and let the egg flower evenly float in the soup instead of sinking to the bottom of the barrel. Starch is actually the simplest thickener. Everybody eats frozen pork skin, and soup with braised fish also becomes jelly in the cold room. These substances that can form jelly are called gelatin, which can also be called collagen. It is also a kind of increase that the people love to see. Thickener.

There are about 30 thickeners in food additives, which give the food a thick, suitable taste. The most common of these thickeners are modified starch and gum materials such as sodium carboxymethyl starch, hydroxypropyl starch, guar gum, xanthan gum, pectin, gelatin, and the like. Many thickeners come from natural foods such as sodium alginate and agar. The xanthan gum in the news is actually derived from the microbial fermentation of corn starch, and to a certain extent, it is also "natural."

Is thickener safe?

The safety of thickeners is generally very high, so in many foods there is no limit to the amount of use, and they are also considered "dietary fiber", the so-called "long-term use, excessive use of the human body will damage", and There is no scientific basis. However, the “Standard for the Use of Food Additives” (GB2760-2011) has specific provisions for the use of food additives. It can indeed be seen that the scope of use of xanthan gum does not include rice products. How can this be understood?

First of all, the porridge congee sold in porridge belongs to fresh and ready-to-eat foods. Whether the GB2760 specification is applicable or not is currently widely controversial. This is not a perfect solution in foreign countries. Should restaurants be allowed to use food additives in the end? It is almost impossible to use it at all. For example, seasonings such as vinegar, soy sauce, and sauce are used. Preservatives may not be allowed, but the preservatives in soy sauce used in restaurants are inevitable.

Second, the specific analysis of specific issues to see what purpose is to use thickener porridge shop.

If thickeners are used to reduce the amount of rice, there may be suspicion of shoddy, which violates the principle of the use of food additives. (One of the basic requirements that food additive use should meet: Do not cover quality defects in the food itself or in the process, or use food additives for the purposes of adulteration, adulteration, and counterfeiting.) Some stores put porridge in plastic cups in advance. In fact, like the eight-treasure porridge, if you do not use thickeners, you will be stratified by porridge for a while, and it will taste bad. Therefore, if the purpose of thickening is to make the mouthfeel better, there is no violation of the principle of use of food additives. (One of the situations where food additives can be used: improving the quality and stability of foods, improving their organoleptic properties; facilitating the production, processing, packaging, transport, or storage of foods.)

Finally, is it necessary to use thickeners for porridge?

If the simmer is over for a while, the porridge can be very sticky. After all, the rice also contains starch, and the starch itself can thicken. In addition, adding a little alkali also has a good effect. But when the porridge is spread over the guests, does the back kitchen have time and patience to simmer slowly? It may be that in order to save time, there is not enough time for embarrassment.

However, from a cost-effective point of view, even if businesses are reluctant to put rice, the release of starch is obviously a more convenient and more cost-effective alternative to food additives. In the news report, 35 bucks can buy 2 pounds of xanthan gum. If you buy starch, you can buy 20 jins. In the online search for several so-called "porridge treasures" information, ingredients are mainly starch or modified starch.

In general, porridge is not a non-thickener. However, as long as there is no violation of the principle of use of food additives, there is no safety problem, consumers do not need to panic. Food additives seem to be very mysterious. In fact, many of them are inspired by our traditional craftsmanship. Even the so-called "artificial synthesis" and "chemical products" have their safety checked by strict scientific procedures. However, the phenomenon of miscellaneous selling and use of food additives does exist in the industry. Regulators need to make good use of this barrier.

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