Evaluating the effect of plant protein functionalities on the performance of high-protein plant-based cheese

Abstract: Plant-based alternatives are at the forefront of food science research, driven by considerations of health, ethics, and environmental sustainability. However, current commercial plant-based cheese alternatives often lack the nutritional properties and functionality compared to dairy cheese. The performance of eleven plant proteins was evaluated in a formulation for plant-based cheese containing 18% w/w protein and 12% w/w waxy starch. The goal was to determine the relationship between protein functionality and cheese performance. The findings revealed that greater cheese hardness is associated with increased melt, stretch, and oil loss. Additionally, the kinetic melting of samples showed a positive correlation between tan δ and increased sample melt. The best cheese performance was achieved with proteins that had high purity ( >70%), low solubility, low emulsion stability, and high water-holding capacity. Techniques such as FTIR spectromicroscopy and computed tomography confirmed that proteins acting as particulate fillers and remaining as protein aggregates in the cheese matrix allow the waxy starch to form a continuously connected network, resulting in superior melt and stretch properties. In contrast, proteins that exhibited high solubility, low purity, low water-holding capacity, and high emulsifying stability led to cheese samples with poor melting characteristics. This was attributed to the disruption of the starch structure caused by these proteins, as well as the alteration of the overall structure due to the carbohydrates present in the low-purity proteins.