Applicability of salt reduction strategies in pizza crust.

In an effort to reduce population-wide sodium intake from processed foods, due to major health concerns, several different strategies for sodium reduction in pizza crust without any topping were evaluated by sensory analyses. It was possible to reduce sodium by 10% in one single step or to replace 30% of NaCl by KCl without a noticeable loss of salty taste. The late addition of coarse-grained NaCl (crystal size: 0.4-1.4 mm) to pizza dough led to an enhancement of saltiness through taste contrast and an accelerated sodium delivery measured in the mouth and in a model mastication simulator. Likewise, the application of an aqueous salt solution to one side of the pizza crust led to an enhancement of saltiness perception through faster sodium availability, leading to a greater contrast in sodium concentration. Each of these two strategies allowed a sodium reduction of up to 25% while maintaining taste quality.