Harnessing rice glutelin and chickpea proteins interactions to enhance functional and nutritional qualities of plant-based cheese

The recent demand for plant-based dairy alternatives has increased the focus on improving the organoleptic, and nutritional attributes of plant cheeses to match their dairy counterparts. This study aimed to develop a functional cheese using the synergistic interactions of rice glutelin and chickpea proteins to enhance both nutritional and textural properties. Functional characterization revealed that rice glutelin exhibited a higher water-holding capacity of 340% and elevated solubility, while chickpea protein showed a superior oil-holding capacity of 550% and higher surface hydrophobicity. Cheeses were prepared using a 40:60 blend of rice glutelin to chickpea protein, which yielded 21.3% protein, 13.8% fiber, and better moisture and lipid content. It exhibited superior textural qualities, including 1.25-fold higher cohesiveness, 1.4-fold greater springiness, and 32% reduced oil separation compared to glutelin cheese. The blended cheese also demonstrated synergistic improvement in the viscoelastic properties and loss and storage moduli of the developed cheeses. The presence of chickpea globulins and rice glutelins resulted in complementary cross-linking mechanisms involving both covalent disulfide and non-covalent molecular interactions, increasing textural and viscoelastic quality. Amino acid profile indicated a balanced formulation, with chickpea contributing lysine and rice glutelin supplying hydrophobic branched-chain amino acids. The 40:60 blend also achieved a PDCAAS of 0.415 and an in-vitro digestibility of 39%. These results demonstrate that blending rice glutelin and chickpea proteins significantly improves the nutritional profile and functional characteristics of plant-based cheese, closely mimicking the properties of traditional dairy cheese. • Rice–chickpea protein synergy improves texture and nutrition in plant-based cheese. • The 40:60 rice–chickpea mix delivers 21.3% protein and 13.8% dietary fiber. • Digestibility (39%) and PDCAAS (0.415) show better protein quality. • Crosslinking via covalent and non-covalent bonds boosts texture resilience.