That Mercadona product you probably give to your kids contains alcohol and you didn’t know it.

Sometimes when we read the ingredient list of a product, we are surprised to find one that we had no idea about. This is exactly what happened to many people when they looked at the ingredients of Mercadona’s refrigerated dough, whether they are puff pastry or filo pastry. All of them contain ethanol. Logically, this could be a concern if consumed by children, pregnant women, or anyone who for some reason should not or does not want to do so. drink alcohol

This is true of all puff pastry, regardless of brand. They all contain ethanol, but what is the cause? Is it a concern to consume it?

The reality is that there are several reasons why puff pastries might contain alcohol. Any of these could happen directly during the preparation of the product, while the other can be added a posteriori. The good thing is that, regardless of its origin, virtually all of the ethanol evaporates when baking puff pastry. Let’s see what we should take into account.

Why is there alcohol in puff pastry?

As the chef explained in a post on his Facebook account. Juan Lorcaethanol is not added to puff pastry, but is formed fermentation during cookingAs the dough rises, the starch sugars ferment to form ethanol. This is true.

But it can also be added from the outside so that help preserve itIn 1987, a group of Canadian scientists demonstrated that adding ethanol vapor to dough for baked goods, such as puff pastry, reduced yeast growth. Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The fermentation that he carries out is necessary for the preparation of these products, but once they are ready, it is necessary to prevent them from growing too much, since this contributes to reduce its durabilityOn the other hand, ethanol is also good antibacterialwhich prevents contamination of the product.

It has even been noted that ethanol may affect the properties of the dough. For example, it helps increase your tenacity, making you more moldableOf course, this also makes it less expandable, so the quantity needs to be controlled.

Is it dangerous to eat these foods?

We already know why there is alcohol in puff pastry. The reality is that this is very little and for good reasons. It’s not about the taste of the final product, like vodka. But it’s logical that we’re concerned about its consumption, especially in the groups mentioned above.

However, there is no need to worry, as most of the ethanol is removed during baking. It should be noted that not everything disappears; but if they still remain, the dose will not be harmful.

This can be seen in a study published in 2016 on the effects of cooking with beer. Several experiments were conducted at different temperatures, doses and cooking times to check how much alcohol was left in the end result. Thus, it was seen that the figures varied from 2.62% by volume and 2.48% by weight to undetectable levels. The highest amount of ethanol measured was 1.28 grams.

If we take into account in this case that we start with a very low dose of ethanol, the final result may be impossible to measure. Moreover, the fact that alcohol evaporates faster than water facilitates the formation of a larger amount air bubbles and the prepared dough turns out more fluffy.

So no, it is not dangerous to cook puff pastry dishes for children. So, if this dish is a cake full of sugar, nothing will happen if it is accidental, but do not abuse it. This sugar will be much more harmful than the ethanol that may remain after baking.