Quality characteristics and fibrous structure formation mechanism of walnut protein and wheat gluten meat analogues during high-moisture extrusion cooking process

• Published in: Food chemistry 2025-01, Vol.463 (Pt 2), p.141168, Article 141168
• Main Authors: Lei, Shuwen, Zhao, Chunyan, Miao, Yue, Zhao, Hong, Liu, Zhichen, Zhang, Yuzhuang, Zhao, Lei, Peng, Chunxiu, Gong, Jiashun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cooking; Fibrous structure formation mechanism; Glutens - chemistry; High-moisture extrusion process; Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; Juglans - chemistry; Meat analogues; Meat Substitutes; Molecular Weight; Plant Proteins - chemistry; Triticum - chemistry; Viscosity; Walnut protein; Wheat gluten
• ISSN: 0308-8146; 1873-7072; 1873-7072
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.141168

Blending two or more materials to create better high-moisture meat analogues has been actively studied in the food science and technology field. Walnut protein is a high-quality plant-based protein resource, yet its full potential remains underexploited. Thus, this study focused on exploring the quality characteristics and fibrous structure formation mechanism of walnut protein (WP) and wheat gluten (WG) meat analogues during high-moisture extrusion cooking process. Results showed that the optimized WP and WG-blended high-moisture meat analogues exhibited a more pronounced anisotropic and oriented fibrous structure. The blending of WP and WG can protect the molecular chains from the thermal transition, and promote the aggregation of protein molecules mainly by enhancing the interaction between hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds, increasing the apparent viscosity and forming protein subunits with larger molecular weights (>100 kDa) to stabilize the newly formed conformation. Additionally, the content of α-helix was the highest among the secondary structures. This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of WG and WP to produce HMMAs with rich fibrous structures. [Display omitted] •Blending WP and WG have a positive effect on the quality characteristics of HMMAs.•WP and WG-blended HMMAs has a more oriented fibrous structure.•Large molecular weight protein aggregates might facilitate fibrous structure formation.•The formation mechanism of WP and WG-blended HMMAs fibrous structure is investigated.