Recently, our department's Associate Head, Prof. Chiou Jiachi, Amber, and Research Assistant Professor, Dr Chang Jinhui, Gail were invited to share their research findings on i-CABLE News. Their team has extracted functional components from natural mushrooms to develop a new type of fat replacer that can be used to produce low-fat foods, claiming to prevent obesity and other metabolic diseases. For example, by heating cream and milk, mixing in these fat replacements with sugar, adding gelatin, and freezing it in cups, they can create a "low-fat" Italian panna cotta.
Currently, the research team is collaborating with hotels to produce food. The hotel manager, Mr. Li Jing-heng, stated, "Hotels need to make many desserts, such as ice cream and cakes, where cream is a primary ingredient. In addition to cakes and ice creams, cream is also used in appetizers and Western dishes, as sauces in Western cuisine often contain cream. Our chef team has spent months testing different foods, and we can't distinguish any difference in taste."
Dr Chang, pointed out that mushrooms are generally low in fat, containing about 0.5% to 3% fat. "Our main target is high-oil, high-fat foods. We are trying to apply this in cookies, which can reduce fat by half, and in cream cakes or cream products, where fat can be reduced by 25%. This application is quite simple, and basically any factory or home kitchen can use this development by mixing the powder into food."
Prof. Chiou added, "Firstly, it can reduce the impact of calories; secondly, it can help improve beneficial gut bacteria. In experiments with mice, we found that obese mice had some anxiety issues, which significantly decreased after consuming our developed formula. Overall, there were notable improvements in health, as well as in blood sugar and lipid control."
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The professors noted that some fat replacements on the market may be difficult for consumers to accept due to their ingredients and taste. In the future, they will continue researching this mushroom-derived fat replacement to bring more innovative health food options to consumers.
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