Ease of mastication index-Quantification of mastication effort using quality function deployment

Beef and plant-based burgers' mastication parameters depend on texture rather than on serving conditions

Previous studies dealing with plant-based meat analogs confirmed the potential of oral processing methods to identify options for improving those products. Knowing that sensory perception can be influenced by adding condiments, this short communication aimed to investigate the texture and oral processing of four plant-based burger analogs and a beef burger when consumed in portions or as part of model meals with buns and sides. Texture profile analysis indicated that beef burgers and analog E were the toughest. Two analogs (B and S) showed textures close to beef, while one (analog D) displayed significantly lower values for hardness, toughness, cohesiveness, and springiness. The instrumental data was only partly reflected in the mastication parameters. Adaptations in mastication behavior were expected, but differences between the plant-based analogs were smaller than anticipated, although clear differences were observed for consumption time, number of chews and number of swallows. On the whole, mastication patterns concurred within different consumption scenarios (portions, model burgers), and significant correlations with instrumental texture were obtained.

The influence of different cooking treatments on vegetables' bolus properties

The influence of boiling, steaming, grilling and sous-vide treatments on bolus properties of vegetables was investigated. Cooking produced potato boluses with large particles or pasty boluses unsuitable for analysis. Celeriac preserved its brittleness and produced more small particles as mastication prolonged. Eggplant and zucchini were similar and both produced relatively large particles throughout the mastication. Saliva incorporation results showed an uncommon trend since boluses from the moment of swallowing did not have the highest moisture content. It was inferred that boiling had similar effects as steaming on one side, and grilling had similar effects as sous-vide on the other.

A dynamic in vitro oral mastication system to study the oral processing behavior of soft foods

A bolus-oriented artificial oral mastication system was developed to simulate the dynamics of food mastication in the human mouth. The system consists of a chewing unit, a bolus forming unit, and provisions for the dynamic incorporation of saliva during mastication. The system performance was validated with in vivo trials (n = 25) considering time-dependent changes in particle size, textural attributes and rheological behavior of the bolus. Idli, a fermented and steamed black gram-rice-based Indian food was considered the model soft food for all trials measured in triplicates. The mastication dynamics were evaluated by analyzing bolus properties during every 3 s of mastication. Large strain shear rheology tests revealed that the viscosity of the sample decreased over time. Results of in vivo trials follow close trends in particle size and rheological behavior and have no significant change in correlation with in vitro mastication results. Similar observations were made in the half softening time of idli during mastication as determined using the relative change in hardness (hardness ratio (H_t/H₀)) values fitted to the Weibull model. Also, a model to simulate the time-dependent changes in bolus adhesiveness was developed.

Purple eggplant and zucchini color, mechanical properties, mastication, and sensory perception influenced by boiling and grilling

The present study investigated the influence of boiling and grilling deployed at 15, 30, and 45 min on selected eggplant and zucchini qualities. The colorants present in these vegetables contribute to their attractive appearance while presenting health-benefit components. This study shows that boiling and grilling differently affected the color properties of the eggplant and zucchini flesh and skin, leading to discoloration. However, the multifactorial mechanisms behind this phenomenon are not yet fully uncovered. Both boiling and grilling caused softening in examined vegetables within cooking prolongation, but different effects were observed. In the case of grilling, large- and small-deformation mechanical parameters established higher values. Thus, grilling produced firmer samples, which was further projected on mastication and dynamic sensory perception. Although there was limited differentiation in mastication parameters, it was observable that grilled products were more mastication-demanding. The number of chews and consumption time provided most of the information and established higher values for short-time cooking treatments and grilling. As a consequence, samples that had longer in-oral exposure times were perceived as bitter (eggplant) or sweet (zucchini). Oppositely, boiled vegetables were juicier. Regardless of the type of vegetable or cooking method, the shortest cooking treatments resulted in products dominantly perceived as firm.