Effects of pH and salt concentration on the fibrous structure formation of plant proteins during high-moisture extrusion and shear

Due to health and environmental factors, the food industry is looking for ways to introduce meat replacers made from plant-based proteins to consumer markets. The presence of structural anisotropy in the form of fibre is a prerequisite for meat analogues. There are two most widely used protein structuring methods: shear cell structuring and high-moisture extrusion. Structuring with both technologies results in a product with a meat-like anisotropic fibre structure. However, structure formation ability depends on the protein ingredients used, which leads to plant protein products with varying texture hardness and extent of fibre alignment. In the current study, we will test if it is possible to tune these properties based on the hypothesis that plant proteins have different structure formation abilities under varying pH conditions and salt concentrations.