The present study was carried out to gain consumer insights on the use of tempeh (a fermented soy bean product) to improve the healthiness of beef patties and to determine the acceptable level of tempeh (10%, 20%, or 30%) in the patty. The study consisted of conducting two focus groups (n = 15), a pilot sensory evaluation, and a full consumer sensory study. The focus groups were asked about their consumption of beef patties, attitudes towards processed meat, attitudes towards negative aspects of red meat consumption, and attitudes towards tempeh consumption, as well as sensory perceptions of the cooked patties and their visual acceptance of raw patties. Focus group discussions suggested that there was a market for the product if consumers were informed of tempeh health benefits. Participants seemed more willing to choose how to balance their diet with an antioxidant source than buy a beef patty with added antioxidants. The focus group participants rated the visual attributes of raw patties from all treatments and it was found that the 20% tempeh and 30% tempeh patties were ranked lower (p < 0.05) than the others. Overall, the sensory experiments showed that the inclusion of 10% tempeh was the most acceptable level of addition. There were no significant (p > 0.05) differences between the control and 10% tempeh patties for overall acceptability or acceptance of flavor. However, 10% tempeh patties were found to be more tender and juicier than the control (p < 0.05). A proper knowledge and awareness of consumers about the benefits of tempeh could allow the development of beef containing tempeh products.
Keywords: acceptability; beef; consumer perceptions; patties; sensory; tempeh.