Plant-Based Seafood Analogs

Abstract

There is a growing global need to shift from animal- towards plant-based diets. The main motivations are environmental/sustainability-, human health- and animal welfare concerns. The aim is to replace traditional animal-based food with various alternatives, predominantly plant-based analogs. The elevated consumption of fish and seafood, leads to negative impacts on the ecosystem, due to dwindling biodiversity, environmental damage and fish diseases related to large-scale marine farming, and increased intake of toxic substances, particularly heavy metals, which accumulate in fish due to water pollution. While these facts lead to increased awareness and rising dietary shifts towards vegetarian and vegan lifestyles, still the majority of seafood consumers seek traditional products. This encourages the development of plant-based analogs for fish and seafood, mimicking the texture and sensorial properties of fish-meat, seafood, or processed fish products. Mimicking the internal structure and texture of fish or seafood requires simulating their nanometric fibrous-gel structure. Common techniques of structuring plant-based proteins into such textures include hydrospinning, electrospinning, extrusion, and 3D printing. The conditions required in each technique, the physicochemical and functional properties of the proteins, along with the use of other non-protein functional ingredients are reviewed. Trends and possible future developments are discussed.

Meat Analogues in the Perspective of Recent Scientific Research: A Review

“…Despite many technological advances in the production of meat analogues, the most widely used texturing method for amorphous plant materials to date is extrusion [ 8 , 9 , 10 ]. The principle of the method is to subject a food mixture containing proteins to hydration and high temperature, high pressure and mechanical interactions [ 8 , 41 ]. The extrusion process consists of three main steps: mixing proteins with water in a twin-screw extruder; cooking in a chamber under high temperature and pressure; and cooling in a cooling matrix [ 9 , 13 ].…”

“…The extrusion process consists of three main steps: mixing proteins with water in a twin-screw extruder; cooking in a chamber under high temperature and pressure; and cooling in a cooling matrix [ 9 , 13 ]. Many parameters affect the extrusion process and the product texture obtained, including the following: water content, screw speed, processing temperature, matrix geometry, presence of polysaccharides and type of raw material [ 13 , 41 ]. There are two types of extrusion that result in products with different properties.…”

“…The product of such processing is characterised by a porous, spongy structure, high water binding capacity and low water and fat content [ 9 , 26 ]. TVP produced using low-moisture extrusion requires hydration prior to further processing, e.g., to produce a meat analogue in the form of chunks, nuggets or crumbles [ 41 ]. The second type of extrusion is high-moisture extrusion (above about 40%) [ 9 , 26 , 42 ].…”

“…The second type of extrusion is high-moisture extrusion (above about 40%) [ 9 , 26 , 42 ]. This method is used to produce meat analogues with a fibrous structure resembling whole muscle or restructured meat products [ 41 , 42 ]. High-moisture extrusion allows for more complex formulations, and it is not necessary to use ingredients with high solubility, making it a more cost-effective technology [ 26 , 42 ].…”

“…There are different 3D printing techniques: extrusion, inkjet printing, binder jetting and bioprinting. The production of meat analogues most often uses extrusion-based 3D printing, which involves extruding a material, consisting of a mixture of, e.g., plant protein and water through a nozzle and forming the product layer by layer in a manner that mimics muscle fibres [ 22 , 41 ]. The process is influenced by the printability of the material used, which ensures the flow out of the nozzle and the ability to maintain and stiffen the 3D structure after extrusion [ 41 , 45 ].…”