Explain about the Maillard Reaction?
The Maillard reaction sometimes called nonenzymatic, nonoxidative browning is simply the reaction between the amino group of a protein or peptide or amino acid and the reducing group of a reducing sugar at high temperature. An amino group from a protein combines with an aldehyde or ketone group of a reducing sugar to produce brown colour and aroma in a variety of foods, including fried foods and baked goods such as breads. It is interesting that the type of sugar and the type of amino acids will impart the "brown" color thus obtained. The color may range from a yellow to red. The key here is the reducing sugar. Those that are efficient reducing sugars are fructose, glucose, maltose, galactose and lactose. Surprisingly, table sugar, or sucrose, is not a reducing sugar. The reactivity of glucose on heating gives to the subtle orange red colour in bread crust which is a result of browning (Maillard reaction). Caramelization of fructose generates a dark brown crust. Breads that consist of sucrose often yield a darker, rich-coloured crust than breads prepared with glucose.