Rheological properties of dry-fractionated mung bean protein and structural, textural, and rheological evaluation of meat analogues produced by high-moisture extrusion cooking

Davide De Angelis; Christina Opaluwa; Antonella Pasqualone; Heike P Karbstein; Carmine Summo

doi:10.1016/j.crfs.2023.100552

Rheological properties of dry-fractionated mung bean protein and structural, textural, and rheological evaluation of meat analogues produced by high-moisture extrusion cooking

Curr Res Food Sci. 2023 Jul 21:7:100552. doi: 10.1016/j.crfs.2023.100552. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Davide De Angelis¹, Christina Opaluwa^{2

3}, Antonella Pasqualone¹, Heike P Karbstein², Carmine Summo¹

Affiliations

¹ University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Department of Soil, Plant and Food Science (DISSPA), Via Amendola, 165/A, 70126, Bari, Italy.
² Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Process Engineering in Life Sciences, Chair of Food Process Engineering, Gotthard-Franz-Straße 3, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany.
³ Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV, Giggenhauser Straße 35, 85354, Freising, Germany.

Abstract

A closed cavity rheometer was used to study the rheology of dry-fractionated mung bean protein -DFMB- (55% protein d.m.). Then, the high-moisture extrusion cooking at 40% and 50% moisture contents and different temperatures (115, 125, 135 and 145 °C) was performed, investigating the impact on structural, textural, and rheological properties of extrudates. When subjected to a temperature ramp (40-170 °C), DFMB showed an increase of G* from 70 °C, as a consequence of starch gelatinization and protein gelation. The peak, indicating the end of aggregation reactions, was at 105 °C and 110 °C for DFMB at 50% and 40% moisture content, respectively. The time sweep analysis described the protein behavior in no-shear/shear conditions, highlighting a more pronounced effect of the temperatures compared to moisture content. During the extrusion cooking, the temperature increase led to a decrease of pressure, indicating a reduction of the melt viscosity. The microstructure of the extrudates showed a more pronounced anisotropic profile when higher temperatures were applied. Hardness, chewiness, and cohesion were directly correlated with the temperature, which also affected the rheological properties of extrudates. A combination of textural and rheological analyses can offer a clear overview of the structural characteristics of meat analogues.

Keywords: Closed cavity rheometer; Dry-fractionated protein; High-moisture extrusion; Meat analogues; Plant-based protein; Textural evaluation.