LIPOLYTIC-ACTIVITY OF WHITE PEPPER POWDER AT HIGH-TEMPERATURES IN A NONAQUEOUS SYSTEM

White pepper is added as a spice to goose fat in the food industry (pa rticularly in the liver pate industry) and causes the development of u ndesirable flavors. In the present study, we demonstrate that white pe pper exhibits lipolytic activity when reacted with goose fat in a hydr ophobic system. Temperature and pH dependence measurements suggested t hat two enzymes or isoenzymes with optimal temperatures at 55 and 85 d egrees C, and with optimal pH at 7 and 9, are involved. Wet sterilizat ion of the white pepper irreversibly inactivates its lipolytic activit y. Dehydration, destroyed while remoistening, recovered the catalytic activity of the pepper. The reaction obeys classical Michaelis-Menten kinetics at 85 degrees C.