Abstract
In recent years, there has been a growing interest from the food industry in new products that are increasingly desired by consumers because of the functional ingredients they contain. This category certainly includes fermented plant-based beverages, which combine the properties of plant substrates with the beneficial effects of fermentation on human health. In our study, two trial variants containing 20% and 30% black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) seed press cake (BCPC) were inoculated with kefir grain cultures and then incubated at 25 °C for 24 h. The resulting beverages were stored under refrigeration (6 °C) for 28 days. During storage, pH, total free amino acids, reducing sugars, changes in the microbial population, viscosity, textural parameters, and color were measured on days 1, 5, 7, 14, 21, and 28. Throughout the storage period, the number of lactic acid bacteria, as well as yeasts, exceeded the recommended minimum level. Numerous changes in product parameters were observed in the tested beverages as a result of fermentation compared to non-fermented products. This study indicates the possibility of using BCPC as a valuable matrix for the production of a functional kefir-like beverage.
Highlights
New consumer behaviors have strongly affected the market for alternative dairy products
One of the important factors affecting the fermentation process is the improvement of nutritional value and sensory properties through the production of metabolites, such as organic acids, while extending the shelf life of products by lowering the pH value, which is due to the metabolic activity of microorganisms [24,25]
It was shown that BCPC fermented with kefir grains can be a good alternative to traditional kefir, especially considering the high content of microorganisms
Summary
New consumer behaviors have strongly affected the market for alternative dairy products. Demand for new plant-based products is driving strong growth in this sector. The product market share of plant-based dairy-like beverages is constantly increasing and is reaching a value of $14 billion [1]. Sources of plant-based products can be divided into several groups and the most common are cereals, legumes, nuts, seeds, and pseudo-cereals. This could be an area for unconventional use of press cakes (the solids remaining after pressing oil from oilseeds), one of the broad groups of valuable agro-industrial by-products [2]
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