RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF PLANT-BASED FISHBALL ANALOGUES MADE FROM SOY PROTEIN AND KONJAC GLUCOMANNAN

The demand for seafood is increasing, leading to concern for the sustainability of current seafood supplies. The concern and the increasing dietary shift towards vegetarianism encourage the development of plant-based seafood alternatives. Mimicking the texture and sensory characteristics of traditional seafood is still challenging. This dissertation developed a plant-based fishball analogue (PFB) with soy protein and konjac glucomannan (KGM), mimicking the texture and taste of fishball (FB), having demonstrated the texture and rheological properties, the mechanism of texture formation, metabolite release during in vitro digestion, mass and heat transfer kinetics during frying, and the potential of seaweed hydrolysate as a taste agent for PFB taste. Results showed that increasing KGM concentration (up to 8.0%) influenced the texture and rheological properties of PFB progressively, where the hardness, chewiness, and gel strength of PFB were significantly enhanced. KGM could reduce protein breakdown, influencing metabolic release during in vitro digestion.

Author dc:creator

• RAN XINLI

• Fishball analogues; Konjac glucomannan; Rheology; Texture; Taste-active value
• Plant-based