Relation between texturized vegetable protein composition, intrinsic water mobility and sensory perceived texture of plant-based meat burger alternatives

Increasing awareness of food's environmental impact is amplifying the development of plant-based meat alternatives. For these products to succeed, the sensory quality must meet consumers' expectations. The main constituents in the plant-based meat alternatives are texturized vegetable protein (TVP). TVPs exhibit major differences in structure and functionality due to the differences in protein source, moisture content during extrusion and other processing conditions. However, specific investigations of the proportion of different TVPs in actual products are lacking. The present study investigated and compared ratios from 25:75 to 100:0 of high-moisture TVP (HM-TVP) and low-moisture TVP (LM-TVP) in plant-based meat burger alternatives (PBMBA) to a commercial PBMBA and a conventional meat burger. Investigations included proton mobility and proportions using low-field NMR transverse (T2) relaxation and characterization of texture attributes by sensory profiling. The results showed that proton mobility and proportions as well as sensory attributes were distinct in PBMBAs compared to the conventional meat burger. Increasing the ratio of HM-TVP to LM-TVP in the PBMBAs led to a decrease in T2 relaxation time constants and changes in proportion of protons with low and high mobility. The sensory results further elaborated on this finding; samples with lower content of HM-TVP exhibited a meat-like texture more similar to the conventional meat burger (fibrousness, rubberiness, rubbery particles), but not juiciness. The commercial PBMBA, however, exhibited high juiciness, but differed from the meat burger in several texture attributes. These results are a significant contribution to the further enhancement and optimization of plant-based meat alternatives.