AUTHOR=Baig Mohammad Affan , Ajayi Feyisola Fisayo , Mostafa Hussein , Sivapragasam Nilushni , Maqsood Sajid 

TITLE=Mungbean and pumpkin protein isolates as novel ingredients for the development of meat analogs using heat-induced gelation technique

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems

VOLUME=Volume 7 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-food-systems/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2023.1243183

DOI=10.3389/fsufs.2023.1243183

ISSN=2571-581X

ABSTRACT=Mungbean and pumpkin are rich source of proteins and nutrients which could be utilized in novel food formulations. This study involves formulation of meat analogue using mungbean protein isolate (MBPI) and pumpkin protein isolates (PPI) through optimization using Box-Behnken Design (BBD) of response surface methodology (RSM). MBPI, PPI, and methylcellulose (MC) were used as base ingredients for the development of meat alternatives using an innovative heatinduced gelation process. MC and gum Arabic was used as supporting matrices for obtaining desired texture of the meat analogue. The emulsifying activity, water-holding capacity, and oilholding capacity of MBPI and PPI were analyzed. The set of physicochemical response factors used in RSM was moisture content, protein content, color, and textural properties of the formulated meat analogues. The selected independent variables were set at three levels (-1, 0, 1) with protein ratio (20:10, 15:15, and 10:20 of MBPI-PPI), Water (32, 37, and 42 %), and MC (5, 6, and 7 %).RSM results showed that the model effectively described the correlation between the independent variables (protein ratio, water percentage, and MC percentage) and the dependent variables. The microstructure of the analogue showed porous and fibrous structures. It was observed that the degree of cross-linking between protein molecules could have impacted the textural properties that were associated with viscoelastic characteristics as reflected in the rheological analysis. Overall, the study shows that the mungbean and pumpkin seed proteins could be utilized as a potential ingredient to improve the textural properties of the meat analogue, while it is also recommended to explore such proteins with other mechanical processing techniques like extrusion.