Consumers are interested in plant-based alternatives (PBAs) to dairy and meat products, and as such, the food industry is responding by developing a variety of different plant-based food items. For these products to be successful, their textural properties must be acceptable to consumers. These textural properties need to be thoroughly investigated using different sensory methodologies to ensure consumer satisfaction. This review paper aims to summarize the various textural properties of PBAs, as well as to discuss the sensory methodologies that can be used in future studies of PBAs. PBAs to meat have been formulated using a variety of production technologies, but these products still have textural properties that differ from animal-based products. Most dairy and meat alternatives attempt to mimic their conventional counterparts, yet sensory trials rarely compare the PBAs to their meat or dairy counterparts. While most studies rely on consumers to investigate the acceptability of their products’ textural properties, future studies should include dynamic sensory methodologies, and attribute diagnostics questions to help product developers characterize the key sensory properties of their products. Studies should also indicate whether the product is meant to mimic a conventional product and should define the target consumer segment (ex. flexitarian, vegan) for the product. The importance of textural properties to PBAs is repeatedly mentioned in the literature and thus should be thoroughly investigated using robust sensory methodologies.

The prevalence of plant-based alternatives (PBAs) to meat in the marketplace has been increasing in recent years due to consumer demand. One of these plant-based products has aimed to mimic chicken products, specifically chicken nuggets. However, few sensory studies have been conducted on these products. The objective of this study is to evaluate the sensory properties, acceptability, and consumer perception of these PBAs. Participants (n = 105) were asked to evaluate five PBAs and a control (chicken nugget) using hedonic scales and a check-all-that-apply question. They also answered an open-ended comment question about PBAs. The participants separated the control from the PBAs in terms of their hedonic scores and sensory properties. They separated the PBAs based on their textural properties and if they had off-flavors. Participants disliked PBAs that were associated with an aftertaste, as well as beany, fibrous, and chewy attributes. The participants believed the PBAs currently on the market did not successfully mimic a chicken nugget and that improvement is needed, but they did believe PBAs are environmentally friendly.

Consumers have begun to use plant-based alternatives (PBAs) in their coffee instead of dairy products. PBAs can include soy milk, rice milk, coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk, and hemp milk. The objective of this study was to investigate consumer acceptability and sensory perception of coffee with added dairy milk and added oat, soy, and almond PBAs. Consumers (n = 116) that frequently add milk to their coffee (n= 58) and consumers that usually use PBAs (n = 58) were recruited to participate in the study. They evaluated four different coffee samples with the addition of dairy milk as well as soy, almond, and oat PBAs. Overall, the consumers liking increased when they perceived sweetness in their coffee. The plant consumers (usually added PBAs to their coffee) liked the milk addition significantly less than the dairy consumers (usually added dairy to their coffee). In addition, the plant consumers were able to differentiate between the almond and soy PBAs, while the dairy consumers grouped them together. More studies need to be completed to investigate a wider range of PBAs, dairy products, and varieties of coffee.

Chemical irritants, like piperine, have the potential to increase human perception of tastes and odours, including saltiness. This cross-modal interaction could help the food industry develop new salt-reduced food products that maintain their salty taste. The objective of this study was: firstly, to determine the detection threshold of piperine (n = 72), secondly to evaluate piperine’s influence on saltiness perception in model solutions (n = 78), and lastly to identify piperine’s effect on sensory perception of low sodium soup using temporal check-all-that-apply (TCATA; n = 75). The group mean of the individual threshold was 0.55 ± 0.15 ppm. Piperine increased the saltiness perception of the model solutions, but it also increased the bitterness and decreased the sweetness of the solutions. The piperine significantly increased the saltiness intensity of the soups (evaluated using a generalized labelled magnitude), but during the TCATA task, the salty attribute was selected less for the soup with piperine than the control (based on the average proportion of selection). The TCATA indicated that the peppery attribute dominated the participants’ perception of the soup with piperine. More studies are needed to assess piperine’s cross-modal interactions.

Seaweed is a sustainable and nutritionally beneficial ingredient; however, consumers do not regularly eat it in North America. Sugar kelp is one variety of seaweed that is presently underutilized and this study will evaluate Atlantic Canadians’ sensory perception of sugar kelp addition to soup. Participants’ (n = 90) liking and sensory perception of seaweed addition to soup (control [no sugar kelp], 4% wt/wt, 6% wt/wt, 8% wt/wt and 10% wt/wt) was evaluated. A second sensory trial evaluated the amount of sugar kelp the participants (n = 83) would add to the soup if given the opportunity and their resulting sensory perception. The participants used hedonic scales, check-all-that-apply, and general labelled magnitude scales to evaluate the soup. The results identified how consumers perceive sugar kelp in soup, as well as their liking of sugar kelp in soup. In both trials, the participants indicated that sugar kelp could be added at approximately 6% wt/wt without impacting their acceptance. Liking of the soup’s flavour was negatively impacted by the sugar kelp addition; however, it did not impact the amount of soup participants consumed in the second trial. The sugar kelp addition increased the intensity of saltiness and umami at the 6% wt/wt addition level and lower, but at 8% wt/wt the soup was associated with pungency and off-flavours. The results suggest that sugar kelp addition to soup is acceptable at low levels.

Sugar kelp (Saccharina latissma) has many nutritional benefits and has been identified as a rich source of fibre, vitamins, and antioxidants. However, it is not regularly consumed in the Western world, and the sensory perception of foods containing sugar kelp must be investigated to increase acceptance in North America. This study evaluated consumers’ (n = 99) sensory perception of couscous with increasing amounts of sugar kelp (0% (control), 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10% wt/wt). Furthermore, consumers’ purchase intent, liking, and emotional response to couscous with added sugar kelp was evaluated with and without nutritional information. Sugar kelp at 6% incorporation did not impact the consumers’ liking scores (“Like Slightly” on the hedonic scale), but at 8% the consumers’ liking significantly decreased (“Neither Like nor Dislike”). The 8% and 10% levels of sugar kelp addition led to astringency, bitter, hard, brackish, fishy, and chewy attributes being perceived by the consumers. The consumers identified they preferred samples that had soft, savoury, salty, and bland flavours and disliked samples that were brackish and gritty. The nutritional information did not increase overall liking scores, purchase intent, or emotional response. However, the inclusion of sugar kelp in the couscous did lead to an increased selection of positive emotions like happy, joyful, pleasant, and enthusiastic. Overall, the consumers were interested in foods containing seaweed and believed they were nutritious. The results indicated that sugar kelp could be added to couscous up to 6% wt/wt without impacting overall liking.