Professional Chefs Put Low-Carb Products to the Taste Test

(ARA) - Did you know that an estimated 59 million Americans were watching their carbohydrates this past year? And, the popularity of this new lifestyle and eating pattern prompted more than 1,000 new low-carb products introduced this year alone, as food manufacturers continue to provide new choices to meet consumers' demands? With so many new low-carb selections filling the marketplace, how are consumers to know which ones actually taste the best without trying them all?

At the American Culinary Institute (ACI), the independent, chef-based organization dedicated to judging and determining the best tasting food products in America, they recently put the most popular low-carb categories to the taste test.

The taste-certified chefs from ACI make it easy for time-starved consumers to identify the best tasting choices in just about every food category, from everyday favorites to gourmet and organic foods. The organization provides shoppers with a fast, effective way to select the best tasting foods by awarding its ChefsBest Taste Award, currently on more than 1,250 products on grocery store shelves.

"Hundreds of low-carbohydrate alternatives for everyday food categories are landing onto grocery store shelves, and our goal at the American Culinary Institute is to help provide guidance for consumers in choosing the best tasting brand in these new low-carb categories," commented Joey Altman, ACI master taster. "Consumers shouldn't forgo taste when choosing low-carbohydrate versions of everyday food products, but it is important to remember that everything must be eaten in moderation."

ACI's extensive and rotating panel of master taster chefs "palate-tested" popular low-carb categories such as cola, bread, ice cream, peanut butter, cereal and chocolate. Low-carb products that won the top ranking in ACI's ChefsBest Taste judging against a national competitive set include the following:

Cola Beverage: Best Taste Winner: Coca-Cola's C2 Comments: nice medium carbonation that lasts with a good cola flavor and complexity; finishes clean with no aftertaste. Better: Pepsi Edge

Bread: Best Taste Winner: Sara Lee's Delightful Bakery Bread Comments: fresh aroma with a nice tender texture, and a pleasing sweetness-to-salt balance with no unpleasant aftertaste. Better: Joe Bread, Oroweat Carb Counting, Atkins Bakery, Home Pride Carb Action Products Judged But Not Ranked: Cheeters, CarbXtract

Peanut Butter: Best Taste Winner: Skippy's Carb Options Peanut Spread Comments: Creamy texture with nice roasted notes of peanuts and an excellent sweetness-to-salt balance, and good spreadability. Better: Peter Pan, Simply Jif Products judged but not ranked: Fifty 50

Pasta: Best Taste Winner: Dreamfields Comments: Very nice texture with little to no off flavors; texture was pleasing with no grittiness or gumminess. Better: Golden Grain Mission Products judged but not ranked: Bella Vita, Carb Fit, Darielle, CarbXtract, Keto

Pasta Sauce: Best Taste Winner: Bella Vita Comments: Nice balance of acidic, sweet, and spice flavors with good consistency and color; great flavor impact. Better: Carb Options Good: Pastalia, Carb Fit, Keto

Chocolate Ice Cream: Best Taste Winner: Ben & Jerry's Carb Karma Comments: A clean chocolate taste with a creamy texture and no off notes. Better: Breyer's Carb Smart, Keto, Dreyer's/Edy's Carb Benefit Products judged but not ranked: LeCarb, Atkins, Dean's Carb Conquest

Chocolate: Best Taste Winner: Pure De-Lite Comments: Great chocolate flavor and impact with a pleasing sweetness, a pleasant smooth texture and no unpleasant aftertaste. Better: Whitman's Net Carb, Hershey's 1 gram Sugar Carb, Russell Stover's Low Carb Good: Atkins Endulge, Ascher's AdvantEdge Products judged but not ranked: Doctor's CarbRite

Cereal: Best Taste Winner: Kellogg's Special K Low Carb Lifestyle Comments: Balanced sweetness with no artificial sugar flavors, with a toasted texture and a true grain aroma. Better: Total Protein Good: Atkins Morning Start Products judged but not ranked: Nutritious Living Hi-Lo, Keto

Nutrition Bars: Best Taste Winner: Power Bar's Pria Comments: Pleasing chewy consistency without a gritty or waxy texture; a nice flavor intensity without any medicinal or chemical aftertaste. Better: CarbWise, Atkins Advantage Products judged but not ranked: Doctor's CarbRite, Ultimate, Carb Solutions, GeniSoy, Luna Glow, AdvantEdge

ACI's extensive judging of food products follows a disciplined and analytical methodology; the process includes defining food and food-related categories using standard industry data, procuring products as consumers would through the grocery store, judging products through sensory certified and blind testing procedures, and determining a best taste winner by identifying a significant statistical difference.

The judging procedures are conducted using professional, independent chefs, certified in ACI's taste and sensory certification program. Using thorough, controlled testing techniques based in the flavor and sensory industries, the judging protocol used at ACI was adapted specifically for the organization from well-known evaluation methodology. During the judging process, the chefs do not know brand names or clues as to the manufacturer of each product. All labels were reviewed to ensure products judged qualified as lower-carb products.

ACI evaluates thousands of food and food-related products every year; only one ACI ChefsBest Taste winner is chosen in a comparable set of nationally competing products.

To learn more about the American Culinary Institute and to view a complete list of ACI ChefsBest Taste Award winners in categories ranging from everyday favorites to gourmet food products, please visit www.ChefsBest.org.

Courtesy of ARA Content