Mixed pea and soy protein gels with addition of Pereskia aculeata Miller polysaccharide.

• Grant number: 23/10890-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2023
• End date: September 30, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Ângelo Luiz Fazani Cavallieri
• Grantee: Guilherme Franco de Bernardis
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências da Natureza (CCN). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). Campus de Lagoa do Sino. Buri , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The plant-based food industry has been experiencing remarkable growth, driven by the increasing interest of consumers, including vegetarians and flexitarians, in meat-like, but plant-based food options. Understanding the protein gelling properties is crucial for this industry as it facilitates the creation of innovative products and enhances the texture and sensory attributes of traditional foods. Food products are complex, comprising multiple components or mixtures, wherein one or more biopolymers, whether gelling or not, are integrated to achieve optimal texture characteristics. The primary objective of this study is to create a thermosetting gel using isolated soy and pea proteins at varying concentrations. Additionally, the research will investigate the impact of incorporating different concentrations of the proteo-polysaccharide from ora-pro-nobis leaves (Pereskia aculeata Miller), aiming to establish a relationship between the structural properties and potential applications in meat products or plant-based meat analogues. To achieve this, the gels will undergo evaluation for their rheological properties under both high-strain conditions through mechanical tests in uniaxial compression and low-strain conditions through oscillatory shear tests. This project contributes significantly to comprehending the properties of the interaction between two proteins derived from plant sources. While soy is currently the most widely used, pea shows great promise as an alternative protein source. Combining these two proteins holds the potential to create food structures that can effectively replace animal-based proteins in meat products. The incorporation of the polysaccharide extracted from the mucilage of ora-pro-nóbis presents an interesting opportunity, as it offers a novel source of polysaccharides. By studying the interaction of these systems, it becomes possible to modulate the gelation process, thus paving the way for innovative food structures. However, to accomplish this, it is imperative to employ appropriate rheological tools to accurately characterize these systems.