Generating meaty flavour in emulsions made from vegetable oil and water

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Worldwide, more and more people are shifting to flexitarian diets - generally understood as largely plant-based with occasional meat. One route to convince people to eat less meat is if 'meat' from plants possesses similar sensory quality, particularly flavour, to real meat. Meaty flavours are made on an industrial scale but using vegetable oils to prepare high quality meaty flavours in vegan foods is a challenge. Fat provides aroma-active oxidation products and also forms a hydrophobic phase for reaction and storage of aroma-active molecules, while at the fat/water interface other flavour-forming reactions might be possible.In this project, ingredients, conditions, and target molecules will be screened to find the variables with highest impact on meaty flavour. Predictive models will be made for target molecules, and sensory evaluation of selected products will indicate their impact on flavour. Analysis of the target molecules will be done using state-of-the art analytical techniques. The obtained models produced will predict if and how the creation of meaty flavour using vegan ingredients is possible. Flavours successfully created using the model will be tested in plant-based substrates that imitate meat.Objectives:1. To develop and evaluate a model that will predict meaty aroma formation, by studying the Maillard reaction in a biphasic system. This work will involve the examination of different types of vegetable oils and fats, in combination with polar lipids and emulsion stabilizers.2. To use this model to create meaty vegan flavour formulations, that can be assessed in food applications.Major Skills/Techniques the PhD student will be trained on:Flavour extraction and analysisStatistical modellingAdvanced food chemistrySensory analysisThis studentship is an opportunity to be part of a team that includes a University Department highly regarded for its research in food chemistry, alongside two companies internationally renowned for their approach to food innovation.