Development of a novel fat reduction system with quercetin-loaded annealed wheat starch for enhanced emulsifying and oxidative stability in low-fat mayonnaise

This study developed a novel encapsulation system, a natural antioxidant-loaded annealed wheat starch (AS), as a fat replacer with high antioxidative properties. Quercetin (QUE)-loaded AS (QAS) showed the highest antioxidant activity among the other antioxidants-loaded AS. Physicochemical properties of native wheat starch (NS), AS, and QAS were examined. Mayonnaise properties were assessed after substituting fat with AS and QAS. Annealing treatment increased pasting viscosity and decreased swelling power and water solubility index of AS and QAS compared to NS. Low-fat mayonnaise (LF-M) surpassed full-fat mayonnaise (FF-M) in viscoelastic properties and had brighter color, but overall color properties of LF-M were similar to FF-M. LF-M prepared with AS and QAS by replacing fat content at 50% demonstrated 1.767- and 1.765- times higher emulsifying stability than FF-M, respectively. Moreover, replacing fat content with QAS at 30 and 50% decreased lipid hydroperoxide levels by 2.57 and 3.35 times, respectively, compared to FF-M. This study suggests that AS can effectively encapsulates QUE, serving as a promising fat replacer in clean-label LF-M formulations and providing a healthier alternative to conventional mayonnaise.