Oxidative stability mechanism of coconut oil as substitute to cocoa butter in chocolate

Abstract

To appreciate and explore the potential use of coconut oil as substitute in chocolate this research was conducted. In achieving this, three different chocolates were formulated using varied amount of coconut oil (5–15%) as cocoa butter substitute. The formulated chocolate samples and a control were stored for 21 days to evaluate the kinetic reaction of oxidative stability and phenolic and flavonoid content, color and sensory properties. Results revealed that characterizations of oxidative reactions were dependent on coconut oil which had a positive correlation with free fatty acids, saponification and peroxide. Based on statistical tools such as coefficient of correlation (0.9879–0.9976), root mean square error (0.0176–0.3620) and reduced chi-square (1.5 × 10–4– 0.1310), second-order polynomial model accurately predicted kinetic evolution of oxidative stability during storage. In conclusion, coconut oil could be used as cocoa butter replacer in chocolate formulation, however only 5% is recommended based on better mouthfeel, appearance and taste and enhanced polyphenolic content