ABSTRACT
A new culinary technique, inspired by a traditional Portuguese recipe, the Egg Threads (Fios de Ovos), was developed combining scientific and traditional knowledge. It is based on the hot gelling properties of Methylcellulose (MC) and the osmotic dehydration of the gels in a hot sucrose solution to get threads with a wide range of textures and flavours. Resulting products have high potential for the creation of innovative and healthy food products. Creative culinary applications inspired by Portuguese traditional products, flavours and the fine art of Portuguese desserts were developed using threads made of eggless Rice Pudding (Arroz Doce) and Algarve orange juice. The products described in this paper are innovative reinterpretations of traditional desserts, particularly Portuguese Rice Pudding (Arroz Doce) and Nun’s Throat (Garganta de Freira) a conventual sweet consisting of a tube-shaped wafer filled with Egg Threads. The potential of the MC threads for the development of other creative food applications is also demonstrated using orange threads in “food embroidery”.
