How much liquid that is expelled from a food during chewing will determine how juicy the food is perceived.  Can we predict this from instrumental measurements, and can such insights be used to design new foods with optimized texture and juiciness?

Texture and juiciness are key attributes that are decisive for how we perceive a comminuted product like a burger or meat balls. Especially in the development of new, alternative products that include legumes or vegetables as ingredients, these sensory traits related to product texture are important. However, many such products fail to replicate the texture and juiciness of conventional meat. Currently, we lack the complete understanding of the structural characteristics of the products that are related to the retention of intrinsic liquid and thereby the influential factors that govern the perceived juiciness and texture. 

The present study seeks to enhance our understanding of associations between product composition, cooking, and sensory perception of burger-like products manufactured with inclusion of legumes as ingredients. For this purpose, texture analyses and NMR relaxometry, which is a technique to elucidate intrinsic liquid mobility in foods, will be conducted. 

The project will specifically aim to elucidate how the mastication during chewing influences the release of liquid and thereby perceived juiciness by implementing NMR relaxometry analyses after chewing.