Functional and Technological Properties of Sorghum Syrup and Its Use in Ice Cream Technology

Sorghum syrup has a saturated carbohydrate composition, which includes cellobiose, maltose, mannose, rhamnose, ribose, fructose, glucose, and sucrose. The present research featured the physicochemical properties of sugar sorghum syrup, i.e. average molecular weight, density, solubility in water, and melting point, and its prospective use in the production of soft ice cream. The carbohydrate composition of sugar sorghum syrup was defined by the method of normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The antioxidant activity of sorghum syrup was determined using the amperometric method. The study of its physicochemical properties proved that it can be used in soft ice cream technology. The sweetness coefficient was determined in comparison with sugar solution and by a taste panel. With an average number of panelists equal to 5, the value of equivalent sweetness was 1.5. This sweetness of sorghum syrup was equivalent to the sweetness of the sucrose solution with minimal concentration. The assessment of the antioxidant activity of sorghum syrup indicated the possibility of its use in functional products with antioxidant properties. The paper introduces a recipe for soft ice cream: cream (20% of fat), milk (3.2% of fat), skimmed milk powder, sorghum syrup, stabilizer ‘Cremodan® SE 334 VEG’, Citri-Fi dietary fiber. The overrun was studied by the method of determining the volume fraction of air; the acidity was determined by the titrimetric method. The resistance to melting was assessed using a cylindrical sample with a diameter of 35 mm and a height of 5 cm. The sample was thermostated at 25 ± 1°C, while the sample area was fixed at regular intervals. The overrun of soft ice cream was 85%, the resistance to melting equaled 20 minutes. Soft ice cream is a popular product among all groups of the population and is widespread in cafes, restaurants, and health-resorts.