Fructose is the most common ketohexose. It exists in honey and fruits, and combines with glucose to form the sucrose we eat daily. Fructose contains 6 carbon atoms and is also a monosaccharide, an isomer of glucose. It exists in large quantities in fruit juice and honey in a free state. Naturally occurring fructose exists in the form of free D-fructose. Under natural conditions, fructose exists in the form of an oily viscous liquid, not in the form of crystals.

PRODUCT USAGE

Fructose is mainly used as a sweetener in food. Fructose has good hygroscopicity and is easy to absorb water; it is easy for yeast to use and ferments quickly; fructose is easily decomposed by heat and easily undergoes caramelization reaction with amino acids. Compared with other sugars, fructose is more friendly to diabetics.

Fructose products initially appeared in the food field as a substitute for sucrose. Because fructose products have incomparable performance advantages over sucrose, fructose products have gradually completely or partially replaced sucrose in many areas of food processing. The purpose of this replacement is not only to solve the sweetness problem, but also to improve product performance, enhance flavor and taste, and improve product grade. Practice has proved that fructose can replace sucrose 100% in fruit wine, medicinal wine, sparkling wine, medicinal syrup, fruit juice drinks, jam, canned fruit, candied fruit, hard candy, and hard baked products. In ice cream, soft candy, and soft baked products, it can be partially replaced, with a replacement amount of 10-50%. With the deepening of the understanding of the application characteristics of fructose. After the 1990s, many new products have been developed internationally based on the characteristics of fructose, expanding the application field of fructose in food. At present, new application fields of fructose in food are still being discovered.