The Case of Sodium Caseinate?

The Struggle:

I wanted to cover sodium caseinate, because it has a lot of functions that not many people know about. Oftentimes these modern ingredients are used for one purpose. They then seem to get pigeonholed into just being used for that one task. But the best thing is that most of these ingredients have many functions. Sodium caseinate is most commonly used as a protein aid with Transglutaminase (meat glue) and sausage making. But I think we should cover what exactly sodium caseinate is and its many uses. 

“What is sodium caseinate?” 

What is Sodium Caseinate?

Sodium caseinate is another name for casein protein. Casein protein is a protein that comes from milk. Now this is different from whey protein. So when you think of “curds and whey” The curds is where the casein protein ends up. Casein is the protein that allows cheese to be possible. Casein when clotted with rennet makes the proteins line up like good little soldiers. This lined up structure is what makes cheese like mozzarella stretchy. If you have ever eaten string cheese you will know just how this works. 

But how else can it be used? Sodium caseinate is a protein so this means it can be used in many ways. Sodium caseinate is used to fortify many foods including dairy products. Adding casein will help thicken yogurt and increase the protein content. Other foods include infant food and high protein cereal. So anywhere you want added protein sodium caseinate can be added. Sodium caseinate is also used with other ingredients synergistically to improve the stability and viscosity. Guar, carrageenan, and CMC are all synergistic with sodium caseinate in this way. These qualities make this a great addition to any ice cream. The synergistic qualities help increase the creamy texture of the ice cream by covering up ice crystals. 

Sodium caseinate is also added to breads. When sodium caseinate is added to a dough it works as an aid to the Gluten. This strengthens the gluten structure of the dough. The added protein helps the gluten retain gas made by the yeast. This provides stability during proofing and helps prevent the dough from collapsing when moved from the proofing vessel to the pan.

Obviously, sodium caseinate still works amazing in our hot dog recipe or our vegetarian chorizo. But now you know it can be used to improve so many more foods! Find some recipes below to help get you started.  

Ready to get Cooking?

Give our Grill Master Hot Dogs recipe a try! When it’s grill season and you want serve up a hot dog that is oh so much more than a forgettable frankfurter. The addition of a bit of sodium caseinate helps freshly ground meat squeeze into a snap-tacular casing without losing shape or texture.