Physicochemical and Sensorial Evaluation of Meat Analogues Produced from Dry-Fractionated Pea and Oat Proteins

Pea protein dry-fractionated (PDF), pea protein isolated (PIs), soy protein isolated (SIs) and oat protein (OP) were combined in four mixes (PDF_OP, PIs_OP, PDF_PIs_OP, SIs_OP) and extruded to produce meat analogues. The ingredients strongly influenced the process conditions and the use of PDF required higher specific mechanical energy and screw speed to create fibrous texture compared to PIs and SIs. PDF can be conveniently used to produce meat analogues with a protein content of 55 g 100 g-1, which is exploitable in meat-alternatives formulation. PDF-based meat analogues showed lower hardness (13.55-18.33 N) than those produced from PIs and SIs (nearly 27 N), probably due to a more porous structure given by the natural presence of carbohydrates in the dry-fractionated ingredient. PDF_OP and PIs_PDF_OP showed a significantly lower water absorption capacity than PIs OP and SIs_OP, whereas pea-based extrudates showed high oil absorption capacity, which could be convenient to facilitate the inclusion of oil and fat in the final formulation. The sensory evaluation highlighted an intense odor and taste profile of PDF_OP, whereas the extrudates produced by protein isolates had more neutral sensory characteristics. Overall, the use of dry-fractionated protein supports the strategies to efficiently produce clean-labeled and sustainable plant-based meat analogues.