The Effect of Cold‐Temperature Storage on Lipid Stability, Physicochemical Characteristics and Texture Profiles of Plant‐Based Meat Analogues

ABSTRACT Plant‐based meat analogues (PBMAs) have been designed to mimic traditional meat products in all aspects, including sensory aspects, functionality and preparation for cooking. Therefore, it is expected that consumers will expect PBMAs to exhibit the same indicators of food quality decline when stored. This paper examines the lipid stability of two commercially available PBMA products, a chicken nugget mimic and a sausage mimic, when stored under their recommended storage conditions and whether quality indicators used for traditional meat products are applicable. The lipids in the two PBMA products were analysed using capillary and gas chromatography with flame ionisation detectors (Iatroscan FID and GC‐FID). The lipids in both products were predominantly triacylglycerols (TAGs), whereas the fatty acid analyses showed that oleic acid (C18:1) was the most abundant, with 57.4 ± 2.8% for the chicken nugget and 27.7 ± 0.6% for the sausage. Lipid stability profiles, as measured using peroxide, acid, and p ‐anisidine values, as well as the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) test, showed no indicators of lipid oxidation in both PBMA products after refrigerated storage up to their best before date. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR‐FTIR) analysis also supported the results of the lipid oxidation tests. However, significant changes were observed in the textural properties (including large increases in hardness), appearance (total colour change) and significantly high drip loss from both products over the storage period. These indicators may be applicable to judging a change in quality for PBMA products.