From Vegetable Waste to By-Product: Rheological Analysis of a Potential High-Protein Vegetable Burger

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Materials Science

Background:

• Attractive food shapes are increasingly important, especially for children's foods.
• Incorporating nutritious but less appealing ingredients like vegetables into appealing food products presents a challenge.
• Rheological properties of food doughs are critical for creating shape-retaining foods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To utilize nutrient-rich vegetable wastes from the food industry to enrich burgers.
• To evaluate the rheological properties of doughs formulated with vegetable wastes and different proteins.
• To determine the most suitable protein source for creating workable and shapeable vegetable burger doughs.

Main Methods:

• Vegetable wastes (broccoli, pumpkin, carrot, zucchini) were processed into doughs.
• Rheological analysis was performed using frequency sweep and temperature ramp tests.
• Doughs were shaped using molds and subsequently baked.

Main Results:

• Doughs formulated with vegetable wastes were workable and could be shaped.
• Frequency sweep tests indicated that brown rice proteins yielded doughs with superior consistency.
• All tested dough formulations exhibited solid-like rheological behavior.

Conclusions:

• Vegetable wastes can be successfully incorporated into workable burger doughs.
• Brown rice proteins are the most suitable option for preparing vegetable burgers with good structural integrity.
• This research offers a viable method for valorizing food industry byproducts into appealing food items.