Construction of 3D printed reduced-fat meat analogue by emulsion gels. Part II: Printing performance, thermal, tribological, and dynamic sensory characterization of printed objects

Abstract

The manufacture of a high-quality meat analogue needs the utilization of appropriate ingredients through the application of cutting-edge technology to mimic the functional properties of traditional meat without negatively affecting the product features. Here, the reduced-fat soy-based emulsion gels, prepared by biosurfactant variants, were printed via an extrusion-based printer to manufacture a well-defined 3D structure. The printing performance revealed the 3D printed meat analogues formulated by dodecenyl succinylated inulin and ethyl (hydroxyethyl) cellulose presented a finer resolution compared to acetylated and octenyl succinic anhydride modified starches. The microstructure images provided evidence for the formation of an interconnected network with a highly porous structure in the 3D printed samples. Thermal and crystalline behaviors showed that the biosurfactants affected the crystalline structure, offering an increase in the hardness. The oral tribology measurements lead to the conclusion that the presence of biosurfactants reduced the friction coefficients. The presence of a large quantity of aggregated proteins was related to the possible formation of hydrogen bonds between the protein molecules. Moreover, disulfide bonds became progressively important in the samples, including modified inulin and modified cellulose, initiating the development of the fibrous structure. Temporal dominance of sensations also indicated that the biosurfactants induced a fibrous sensation in the printed meat analogues. The results of this study demonstrated how the application of emulsion gels in 3D printing process can further produce reduced-fat meat analogues with desired 3D structure and modified textures for enhanced eating experiences.