What is caseinate?
Caseinate is a casein product that is produced from treating curds with an alkali like calcium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate. Calcium exists as a white to off-white powder. The general composition of caseinate is around 88 percent protein, less than one percent lactose, four-to-five percent ash, about one percent percent fat, and five percent moisture, all of which vary slightly by manufacturer. Caseinate is the most water-soluble form of casein differing from acid casein and rennet casein which are not soluble in water. Sodium caseinate is more water soluble than calcium caseinate.
How is caseinate made?
Skim milk that has been pasteurized is heated and coagulated by an acid or rennet leading to precipitation of the casein protein. Once the milk has coagulated, the whey is drained off and the curds are washed thoroughly with water. Diluted calcium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide is added to the fresh casein curd creating a water-soluble product. The alkali treated casein curds are pressed, ground down thoroughly, and dried with heat which evaporates out the remainder of the water left in the curds to form a powder. Caseinate can also be created from using a dry casein powder that is reconstituted in water and then adding calcium or sodium hydroxide and re-drying the product. Using fresh acid casein curds instead of dried casein powder is the preferred way of creating caseinate as the flavor is preferable. Sodium caseinate and calcium caseinate manufacturing processes are similar, but calcium caseinate is requires more monitoring of the temperature and pH of the solution.
What is caseinate used for?
Sodium caseinate is used for coffee creamers, meat additives, processed cheeses, whipped toppings, ice cream, chocolate, baked goods, and dietary supplements. Sodium caseinate is water soluble, a good emulsifier, has an ability to create and hold foam, absorbs fat, and can improve the nutritional aspects of food primarily through increasing the protein content in the finished product.
Calcium caseinate is used in baked goods, confectionary products, processed cheeses, ice cream, whipped toppings, and dietary supplements. Calcium caseinate has high nutritional properties, improves the structure of finished goods, emulsifies, stabilizes fat, enhances foaming and foam stability, and is semi-soluble in water. Calcium caseinate also contains around 17% glutamic acid which can have many health benefits such as treating low blood sugar, improving memory and focus, boosting the immune system and treating intellectual disorders.
What does caseinate taste like?
Caseinate overall has a very neutral flavor profile. Caseinate has been noted to taste papery, slightly sweet, and overall bland. Towards the end of a caseinate powders’ shelf-life, the powder starts to have stronger cardboard and paper notes. The mouthfeel of caseinate is thick and foamy with a slight astringency on the tongue.
What are the functional properties of caseinate?
Caseinate has many functional properties that can be used to create a more desirable finished product. Caseinate is heat stable making the protein suitable for addition for many applications that require heat treatment during processing.
Sodium caseinate is beneficial when creating foam and stabilizing foam such as in a coffee creamer of whipped topping. Sodium caseinate is beneficial as an addition to a food product to increase nutritional fortification by adding protein. Sodium caseinate can improve texture in beverages by increasing viscosity to give a preferable mouthfeel during consumption.
Due to its semi-soluble state in water, calcium caseinate makes a great coating to capsules to deliver nutraceuticals in the body. Calcium caseinate is a good emulsifier helping to create a cohesive product, especially in baked goods. Calcium caseinate, like sodium caseinate, can also improve the texture in beverages by increasing viscosity to give a preferable mouthfeel for consumption. Calcium caseinate addition can increase nutritional fortification in a finished good by adding protein.