Caramel color composition. Food supplement E150 - all caramel colors

Cooks from ancient times have learned to use all kinds of food colorings in their craft. Changing the color of products is not easy, but very interesting. Warm brown shades are obtained thanks to a dye known as sugar color. In this article we will tell you how to make it and how to apply it.

Making sugar color

Making sugar color at home is not difficult at all. To prepare this dye, you only need sugar and, in some cases, water - nothing else.

Pour a few tablespoons of sugar into a metal bowl and put on a small fire. After a few minutes, the sugar will begin to melt and bubble. You need to remove it from the fire at the moment when it acquires the desired shade of yellow-brown color. Melted sugar should be poured into a bowl folded from food foil. It will be more convenient if this bowl is made square. The main thing is that it does not leak. For reliability, use two- or three-layer foil. When the sugar has cooled and slightly hardened, you need to make longitudinal and transverse grooves on it with a knife, trying to make the squares the same. Finally hardened sugar breaks easily along these grooves.

The use of sugar color

For coloring, take a few squares and fill them with hot liquid, then stir until the burnt sugar is completely dissolved. The resulting brown liquid can be used to change the color of drinks, cereals, broths, doughs, mastic, icing, fudge or jellies.

Sugar color is also used for coloring alcoholic beverages. cognac - the merit of this dye. On the labels it is referred to as E-150. To independently color an alcohol-containing drink, burnt sugar should be dissolved in the alcohol for which it is intended.

E-150

Food supplement E-150 has several additional markings, which are written in brackets, to the right of the main name. E-150 (1) is natural burnt sugar. All the rest are its synthetic analogues. They have the same color as natural burnt sugar, but they lack the traditional caramel flavor.

The benefits and harms of the dye

Burnt sugar is no more harmful than regular white sugar. In some cases, doctors recommend giving it to children for resorption from a dry cough. If we consider synthetic sugar color, its harm can only be noticeable if it is consumed in large quantities. As part of food products it is usually not much, so you can not be afraid of unpleasant consequences.

Since many people believe that in the total mass of products that we bring from stores, the composition of artificial components is so large that our bodies do not have time to get rid of them, in this case we can only advise one thing - to cook our own food, and use semi-finished products as less often. If you learn how to make sugar color with your own hands, and this is not at all difficult, then you will certainly find its use in a variety of cases.

For example, you can make the famous creme brulee ice cream. It owes its unique taste and color to sugar color. If you cook it yourself from the most best products, then it will turn out no worse than the creme brulee that was made in St. Petersburg before the invention of artificial flavors and dyes.

Creme brulee ice cream

Creme brulee ice cream is a dessert that allows you to enjoy all the advantages of sugar caramel - its the most delicate taste and unusually appetizing color. The natural dye sugar color, as we wrote above, is in harmony with various products, but the palm can be safely given to dairy products. To make ice cream, you need 4 tbsp. spoons granulated sugar pour into a non-enamelled metal bowl and melt. Boil should be until the caramel acquires a shade onion peel. Bring 100 ml of cream to a boil and pour into caramel. Stir the creamy caramel and leave to cool.

Four egg yolks rubbed with three tablespoons powdered sugar and combine with creamy caramel. Whip 600 ml of heavy (33%) cream with three tablespoons of powdered sugar. Combine whipped cream with caramel mixture and mix well. Place the creme brulee in a bowl and place in the freezer. To make the ice cream soft, it needs to be stirred every 15 minutes. The duration of freezing depends on the individual characteristics of the freezer. At -20 degrees, ice cream will be ready in one to two hours.

Coloring various desserts

The solid sugar color dye prepared according to our recommendation in many recipes is recommended to be dissolved in water, but, as practice shows, this is not always justified. In some desserts, excess water adversely affects the taste and texture. ready meal. Since sugar color dissolves well in milk, and it is part of a large number sweet dishes, it is better to take hot milk, not water, to dissolve burnt sugar.

Original ways to use sugar color

Sugar coloring of different shades allows you to make creams, jellies and other desserts with puff and decorated elements of different tones of caramel color. To obtain a sugar color of different shades, it must be removed from the fire at different times. At the beginning of boiling, the lightest tone is obtained, one minute after boiling - medium brown, and 2 minutes after boiling, the color of the color will begin to resemble an iodine solution. It is not necessary to overexpose sugar on fire - from a long boil it begins to taste bitter.

Sugar kohler has a peculiar taste that goes well not only with dairy products, but also with some fruits, such as apples and pears. It also harmonizes well with various nuts - it is no coincidence that this component is so popular with lovers of sweet roasting, which consists of roasted nuts and burnt sugar. By adding milk or cream and dried fruits to this duet, you can prepare the famous sherbet, which is so popular in the Middle East.

Sugar color is needed for the manufacture of any confectionery. He is food coloring from pale yellow shades to dark brown with a taste of caramel. Most often, color is called burnt sugar. Caramelized sugar has been made since ancient times in products such as dough, sweets, alcohol, and so on. But what is it for?

Based on the word dye, you can guess that the main task of sugar color is product coloring. There are other purposes for the dye, but they are divided into 4 classes, each of which has its own functions:

1. Additive E150a (I) - ordinary caramel made from carbohydrates after their heat treatment, in which there are no extra reagents;
2. addition of E150b (II) - a dye obtained from alkaline sulfite technology;
3. addition E150c (III) - the resulting dye is created from ammonia technology;
4. the addition of E150d (IV) is a similar dye to the second item, but in this case it has already been produced using ammonia-sulfite technology.

The first addition of dye "A" most often called caramelization, which contains acids, salts and alkalis after special treatment. As in any other dye, E150a (I) contains several important components. For example, starch, fructose, sucrose, dextrose and molasses. All of them are sweeteners that are commonly available in grocery stores. The dye can be replaced as an acid, and components such as potassium, calcium, ammonium and sodium are present here as an alkali. The charge of the dye, in which certain components are present, can be both positive and negative.

In order for the result to be satisfactory, it is necessary to correctly compare the classification of the dye with the reagents, paying attention to the characteristics of the product. Due to the high temperature and density, no microorganisms can develop in the product, which once again proves the high quality. However, due to any dye, allergic reactions are possible. This is because each sugar color is made from certain components.

For example, glucose is obtained from wheat, lactose from milk, and malt syrup from barley. Therefore, when using products with various additives in the form of dyes, it is worth paying attention to the composition. But there are cases when some reagents in the composition may not be indicated. So, it happens in the case of the sulfide method when sulfites are contained in the product, but there is not a single word about them on the packaging. This is because the indicator of traces of sulfite or the component itself in the product is minimized and therefore allergic reactions are detected very rarely.

How to caramelize sugar

To make caramelized sugar for cognac, it will take from two to five years, because cognac is made from alcohol. But this can not be said about all cognacs, but only about those that are blended. If we talk about the recipe for cognac, then in this case you should have a special syrup, water and sugar color on hand, which is what we are talking about today. The last component is needed in order for the cognac color to be more saturated.

Many cognac manufacturers use caramel sugar, which once again confirms the safety of the components and their quality.

Cognacs in which caramel color is not added, can be quickly distinguished from others. Firstly, the main difference is the shade of cognac. Most often it is pale yellow or, conversely, light and saturated. But cognacs of this production scare away their customers, so you can very rarely notice cognacs without caramel sugar on the shelves.

How to make caramel syrup

To prepare caramel for a skate, you need a lot of experience in this area and a good knowledge of the recipes of several stages:

• Cooking caramel sugar;
• fortification;
• aging in oak barrels.

In cognac, the dye is added in the smallest amount for a rich shade. But the taste of the additive can be overlooked, since there is very little caramel color in cognac. In addition to cognac, color is added to other products for a more attractive look. By the way, the E150 additive is completely harmless to the body, so you should not worry when buying a product with a dye of this class.

caramel vodka

To make caramel for moonshine, it is necessary to pay more attention not to the shade of the drink, but to their taste qualities. To do this, the caramel should be a lighter color. Many say that moonshine is homemade cognac, so caramel for moonshine is also needed. For cooking caramel syrup at home, there are two ways to make moonshine, it is wet and dry. Recipe for the first: water and sugar are needed, with the compatibility of which caramel is later obtained. In the second case, sugar must be dissolved in a hot container to the state of burnt sugar. Most often, experts in this field use the second method.

As for the number of ingredients, for the wet method, this recipe: you need 100 g of sugar, 100 ml of moonshine and only half a glass of water. All this must be mixed in a large saucepan and heated over a fire for about 15 minutes until the water evaporates and the liquid turns brown. For the dry method, you can use a frying pan with high sides heated over a fire and gradually pour sugar into it, without stopping stirring.

Sugar caramelization

After a brown foam appears instead of sugar, you need to reduce the heat and leave to warm up to a coffee color. After the liquid is ready, you will need another container, but already metal, in order to to put cooked food in the freezer. For best result do not add too much caramel to the moonshine, this will only spoil the taste and color. About three drops per liter of moonshine will be enough.

That's so very fast thanks exact recipe you can make delicious syrup.

Additive E150 (Sugar color), better known in everyday life as caramel or burnt sugar, is a water-soluble food coloring. Dye E150 is a more oxidized caramel than that used in sweets and confectionery. Additive E150 has a smell of burnt sugar and a slightly bitter taste. The color of the E150 dye varies from light yellow and amber to dark brown.

Although the main function of caramel coloring is food coloring, the E150 additive also has a number of additional functions. In soft drinks, the E150 color acts as an emulsifier to prevent the drink from clouding and flaking. This is facilitated by the light-protective properties of the additive, which prevent the oxidation of the flavor components of drinks.

The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Panel on Food Additives (JECFA) divides caramel color into 4 classes, depending on the method of preparation and physical properties. Detailed description, as well as the features of obtaining and using each class of caramel coloring, you can get from the links below.

Thus, today the following types of E150 dye are used in the food industry:

• sugar color I (additive E150a) - simple caramel obtained by heat treatment of carbohydrates without the use of third-party substances;
• sugar color II (additive E150b) - caramel obtained by alkaline sulfite technology;
• sugar color III (additive E150c) - caramel color obtained by ammonia technology;
• sugar color IV (additive E150d) - caramel obtained by ammonia-sulfite technology.

The E150 additive is obtained by thermal treatment of carbohydrates, mainly in the presence of acids, alkalis or salts. The process of obtaining the E150 dye is called caramelization. At the same time, caramel is made from inexpensive and affordable nutritious sweeteners. As the main component in the production of dye E150, fructose, dextrose (glucose), invert sugar, sucrose, malt syrup, molasses, starch are used. In the role of acids that can be used in the production of caramel color, sulfuric, sulphurous, phosphoric, acetic and citric acid. In the alkaline method of obtaining the E150 additive, ammonium, sodium, potassium and calcium alkalis are used. In addition, when obtaining a caramel color, hydroxides and salts of ammonium, sodium and potassium (carbonates, bicarbonates, phosphates, sulfates, bisulfites) can also be used.

Caramel color molecules can have a positive or negative residual charge, depending on the reagents used in its production. Therefore, in order to avoid such problems as sediment or turbidity of food products, it is necessary to correctly select the class of caramel color, depending on the acidity and other physico-chemical characteristics of the food.

Sugar color has a high microbiological stability. Since the E150 dye is produced at very high temperatures and has a high substance density, it does not support the development of microorganisms.

Effect on the body

Harm

Caramel color E150 can cause allergic reactions in a small part of consumers. However, this is primarily due to the products from which this food supplement is obtained. Wheat-derived glucose, barley-derived malt syrup, and milk-derived lactose can themselves be allergens. Thus, people who are allergic to these types of products should also avoid foods using Sugar Color.

In the production of additive E150 by the sulfite method, the final product may contain traces of sulfites. However, this figure is less than 10 parts per million, so product packaging does not necessarily contain warnings about a possible allergic reaction to dye components.

The international organization JECFA has set the acceptable daily intake (ADI) for E150 food coloring at a level of 160 to 200 mg/kg of body weight, depending on the coloring class. For food additive E150a (sugar color of class I), the allowable daily allowance is not regulated due to its safety for the body.

In 2010, the international chemical safety organization IPCS concluded that commercially produced caramel color has the same toxicological properties as caramel made from sugar at home. The only exceptions are dyes, in the preparation of which ammonium is used (additives E150c and E150d). The IPCS organization has also confirmed in its research that sugar color is not a carcinogen or a mutagen.

Food Administration and medicines The US (FDA) classifies the E150 additive as safe and exempts from mandatory certification.

Benefit

Despite the relative "harmlessness" of caramel coloring, data on any positive effect of the E150 supplement on the human body has not yet been received.

Usage

Sugar color is one of the oldest and most widely used food colorings. Additive E150 is found in almost every type of food industry products (dough, beer, black bread, buns, chocolate, biscuits, spirits and liqueurs, creams, fillers, potato chips, desserts and many others).

Legislation

Caramel color is approved for consumption in most countries of the world. At the same time, in a number of countries there are restrictions on the use of E150 dye in the food industry. Additive E150 is approved for use in the food industry in Russia and Ukraine.

Sugar color, or additive E150, is a food coloring that dissolves in water. In everyday life, it is known as burnt sugar and is used in the manufacture of confectionery. It has a taste of caramel, slightly bitter, and the smell of burnt sugar. The color of the color can be from light yellow to brown.

Color has been used for a long time. This is one of the most ancient dyes. The additive is found in almost every type of industrial product: chocolate, sweets, brown bread, alcohol, dough, and many others.

Why is a supplement needed?

The main function of natural dye sugar color is to color products. But the E150 additive has another purpose. It is added to soft drinks as an emulsifier - it prevents the formation of flakes and turbidity of the product. Light-shielding substances do not allow the components of the drink to oxidize.

Dye called "sugar color" is divided into 4 classes.

The classification is based on the methods of obtaining and the properties of the additive:

• Additive E150a (I). This is a simple caramel, which is obtained by thermal processing of carbohydrates. In this case, third-party substances are not used;
• Additive E150b (II). It is made thanks to alkaline-sulfite technology;
• Additive E150c (III). This caramel is obtained using ammonia technology;
• Additive E150d (IV). It can be made using ammonia-sulfite technology.

The preparation of sugar color E150 is called "caramelization". During processing, alkalis, salts and acids are present. The main component in the manufacture is fructose, dextrose, sucrose, molasses, starch - all sweeteners are inexpensive and affordable.

Sulfurous, phosphoric, acetic, citric, sulfuric acids can be used as acids. Sodium, ammonium, calcium, potassium act as an alkali.

Depending on which reagents are used, the charge of the dye can be negative or positive. In order not to form a precipitate, it is important to choose the right class of dye. To do this, take into account the physico-chemical characteristics of the product.

Features of use

Natural dye has microbiological stability - it is produced at high temperatures, and the density does not allow microorganisms to develop.

Glucose is obtained from wheat, malt syrup from barley, and lactose from milk. This explains why color can cause allergic reactions. All people who have a reaction to these substances should be wary of the supplement - sugar color can harm them.

If the sulfite method is used, the final product may contain sulfites or traces thereof. However, this figure is very small, and rarely causes allergies. Therefore, its presence is not always indicated on the packaging.

JECFA has established that 160-220 mg/kg body weight can be consumed per day, depending on which class the supplement belongs to. E150a is considered safe for the body, so its daily dose is not regulated.

Is there color in cognac?

Ordinary cognac is obtained from alcohol, which is aged for 2-3 years. In order for this drink to be called vintage, the exposure must be at least 5 years. There is a special technology, alcohols are blended. But the composition of cognac includes not only alcohols.

The label should indicate that the drink contains water, sugar color and syrup. Sugar color is present in cognac in order to give it an intense color. It is added by almost all manufacturers.

If the drink is prepared without this additive, it is easy to "declassify". Cognac will have a light, yellowish tint, unsaturated and shallow. As a rule, this scares off the buyer, so such drinks are rare.

Color production technology is very complex, problematic preparation requires certain experience and includes such basic steps:

• cooking;
• Fortification;
• Aged in oak barrels.

The additive gives a rich color, but does not affect the taste and aroma. In addition, in brandy it is in small quantities.

Kohler is widely used in the food industry to give a marketable appearance to unattractive and unappetizing products.

Sugar color, which is also called caramel or food additive E150, is essentially burnt, and has been known to mankind since the time when, in fact, sugar began to be produced. It was subjected to heat treatment, obtaining, depending on its degree, either a soft caramel mass or a solid substance with a characteristic taste. It was the coloring properties of the substance that were discovered a little later, and from about the middle of the 19th century they began to be used in food production. And today food industry uses caramel "E150" to obtain the appropriate coloring of food.

Methods for obtaining the additive, its chemical properties

The substance is very easy to obtain at home - ordinary sugar is added together with the pan and dissolved over low heat. Optionally, you can add or . The longer the mixture is kept on the stove, the more bitter and dark the caramel will be. The sugar color obtained in this way can be dissolved in water, while it acquires a brown or dark brown tint. The resulting syrup can tint a drink or pastries.

For industrial purposes, the substance is synthesized from, or malt syrup.

According to its chemical structure, the E150 additive belongs to natural heteropolymer pigments with a complex structure.

The substance can be in a solid, thick or liquid state: in the form of a powder, granules, syrup or liquid solution. Coloring - beige, yellow-brown or dark brown. Sugar color or caramel has a characteristic smell of burnt sugar.

The additive has a high resistance to temperature and light effects, as well as to reactions with acids.

The melting points of the sugar color depend on what feedstock it was obtained from: 145-149 degrees Celsius for glucose, 98-102 degrees for fructose, 160-185 degrees for sucrose, and, accordingly, the same melting parameters for caramel, made from these ingredients.

In addition to the main component, sulfuric, phosphoric, citric acids, ammonium, sodium, calcium and potassium alkalis can be added to caramel.

In addition to solubility in water, the substance has one more parameter: the degree of solubility in ethanol and.

A reservation should be made at this point - the fact is that several varieties of caramel are hidden under the designation “E150”, since the method of its preparation may include the addition of acids, alkalis, ammonium salts, sodium and potassium.

Thus, they distinguish:

• simple caramel (E150a);
• caramel synthesized using alkaline sulfite technology (E150b);
• caramel obtained by ammonia technology (E150c);
• caramel, which is made using ammonia-sulfite technology (E150d).

And if the first type, 150a, is insoluble in fats, then all other varieties are insoluble in alcohols. These characteristics directly affect in which products which type of caramel can be used.

Basically, the substance is used as:

• dye (changes the color of the product, gives it more saturation);
• emulsifier (in soft drinks prevents precipitation and turbidity).

Application in industry

The main “consumer” of sugar color is the food production industry. Food additive E150 can be found in various products. 150a is found in:

• black bread, dough and pastries;
• dairy products;
• confectionery;

150b is used to make spirits and soft drinks. 150s - an ingredient for protein-containing drinks, sauces and beer. 150d is used in sweet sodas such as Coca-Cola, spirits, pet food. In addition, sugar color is a component of dry broths, canned meat, sausages and sausages.

The light-shielding properties of the substance do not allow food and drinks to oxidize; in non-alcoholic products, sugar color does not allow the appearance of flakes and sediment.

The effect of the supplement on human health

Food coloring E150 is approved for use in all countries of the world. There are no strict prohibitions and restrictions on this matter, however, in the USA there is a requirement for the E150d subspecies - its presence in the product must be indicated.

As for the benefits of eating sugar color, scientists today do not have any confirmed data. And the popularity and widespread use of the substance is due to the almost complete harmlessness to the human body. Possible harm from it is the same as from regular sugar - it can provoke allergic reactions and is contraindicated for diabetics. Overweight people with work problems gastrointestinal tract the use of caramel and products with it in the composition is better to limit. The danger in the composition of the additive may rather be residual traces of acids, alkalis and salts.

There is information that the type of dye E150d is a carcinogen, and in certain quantities provokes the appearance of malignant tumors, but science has no official confirmation of these data.

Sugar color food supplement is perhaps one of the most ancient colorants and sweeteners known to man. From the very moment sugar began to be produced, man began to study its properties and tried to heat it, resulting in caramel. A simple and inexpensive substance of natural origin could not go unnoticed by food manufacturers. Already in the 19th century, when food began to be produced in factory conditions, the dye “sugar color” began to be used first in confectionery, later in drinks and other food.

Since this substance does not pose any significant harm to humans, it can be used in limited quantities by children and adults, with the exception of some exceptions for health reasons.