NL2028431B1 - Vegetable-based food product, process to make it, and its use - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to vegetable-based products having a texture that can be adapted from tempe-like to meat-like and which are produced using a process wherein an edible yeast, like 5 Rhizopus, is reacted with legumes, such as beans and peas, algae, and optionally one or more other edible foodstuff, preferably nuts, to create a mycelium network so as to form edible food products with increased content of proteins, anti oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins with reduced smell, good taste, and acceptable mouthfeel. Also the use of said food products to provide animals and humans with desired nutrients is claimed. 18

Description

VEGETABLE-BASED FOOD PRODUCT, PROCESS TO MAKE IT, AND ITS USE

Technical field The invention relates to vegetable-based products having a texture that can be adapted from tempe-like to meat-like.

In particular the invention relates to the products resulting from the process wherein an edible yeast, like Rhizopus, is reacted with legumes, such as beans and peas, to create a mycelium network so as to form edible food products.

Also the use of said food products to provide animals and humans with desired nutrients is encompassed by the invention.

Background Due to the increase in world population, there are increasing demands on the supply of foods, particularly on sources of protein.

For various reasons it is argued that the production and consumption of meat as a protein source is not sustainable.

More sustainable protein sources originate from, for instance, beans, peas and/or insects.

These sources usually have a high concentration of protein, but also have some drawbacks in respect of digestibility, anti- nutritional factors, unpleasant smell, taste (bitter) or texture, and/or are considered unattractive, compared with meat products.

It is noted that beans of different varieties are a well-known source of protein.

Beans are commonly prepared by soaking dried beans in water overnight and then cooking.

It is also well- known to treat cooked beans with a fungus which enables this highly proteinaceous material to be formed into a cake.

This process is known to many as the tempe process.

The tempe process increases digestibility of the raw material and has been used for many centuries.

It is a natural fermentation process involving a Rhizopus fungus plus many different bacteria and yeasts.

The process binds the beans into a cake form, which can be made in the form of a vegetarian burger patty.

In contrast to tofu, which is derived from processed soybeans, conventional tempe is a whole bean product having different nutritional characteristics and textural qualities.

The tempe fermentation process, and its retention of the whole bean, means that the product has a higher content of protein, dietary fibre, and vitamins.

For example, WO 2013/087558 as well as Tri Handoyo & Naofumi Morita (2008) Structural and Functional Properties of Fermented Soybean (Tempeh) by Using Rhizopus oligosporus, International Journal of Food Properties, 9:2, 347-355, DOI:10.1080/10942910500224746, reported that the fermentation process improves some characteristics including protein level (up to 40 % of the dry mass), fatty acid composition, the level and pattern of oligosaccharides, and the amount of several vitamins, especially vitamin B12 and vitamin D.

The problems with using beans, such as soybeans, as a source of proteins for preparing meat alternative (or replacer) products using a tempe process, all relate to texture, odour, and taste.

The use of whole soybeans gives neither a texture nor a taste similar to minced meat.

The whole beans remain visible in the product and can be felt in the mouth when chewing, also there is a particular smell that many people do not like.

Also, the amount of proteins, anti oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins are still insufficient and food spoilage is an issue.

There has been an ongoing search for solutions to the above problems by providing affordable high protein alternatives to meat products.

JP1994-133718, for instance, treats tempe, also written as tempeh, with extracts of macro-algae (seaweed) to improve the storage stability of fresh tempe.

Also it has been reported herein that the treatment with such extracts eliminates the peculiar odour of tempe.

However, the use of such extracts requires the use of solvents, is time consuming, and goes against the desire to produce tempe in a sustainable matter that uses a minimum of resources.

A.M.Evans et.al. mentioned in 2015 J.

Appl.

Poult.

Res. 24:206-214 that algae are suitably used in broiler feed and as a human supplement {to support the immune function). The positive effect for broilers was confirmed by S.F.

Long et.al in 2018 Poultry Science 97:1881-1890. However, the use of algae in food products is typically not accepted because of the taste and smell that it gives to the food in which it is used.

It is noted that the fermentation process is quite complex and sensitive.

Typically the growth of the fungus, yeasts and moulds will be influenced by the ingredients used.

Therefore changing a fermentation recipe often leads to an inferior or misdirected growth of the mycelium.

There is still a need for vegetable-based products that are rich in protein and do not suffer from the drawbacks of smell and taste and which, preferably are more rich in anti-oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins and can be produced in a sustainable way.

Summary of the invention The invention relates to vegetable-based products having a texture that can be adapted from tempe-like to meat-like.

In particular the invention relates to products resulting from a process wherein an edible yeast, like Rhizopus, is reacted with legumes, such as beans and peas, algae, and optionally one or more other edible foodstuff, preferably nuts, to create a mycelium network so as to form edible food products with increased content of proteins, anti oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins with reduced smell, good taste, and acceptable mouthfeel.

Also the use of said food products to provide animals and humans with desired nutrients is 2 encompassed by the invention. Because of the ingredients and the process used, the process is more sustainable than conventional processes. Detailed description Although the texture of food products does not influence the nutritional value, it is typically desired to have food stuff in a palatable form. This includes the need for the food product to lack offensive smells, taste, and/or mouthfeel. However, the way people perceive smells, taste, and/or mouthfeel differs from person to person. Generally however, protein in the form of meat is appreciated. Therefore, when looking for food stuff that is a protein-rich that is to be used as an alternative to meat, many people prefer to have a meat-like texture. For others a tempe-like texture is acceptable. The invention therefore relates to vegetable-based products having a texture that can be adapted from tempe-like to meat-like. The products are more firm than a paste, which typically water in a very high amount, such as 80% by weight or more, whereby more than 10% of the product can be removed as water by vacuum filtration.

In particular the invention relates to the products resulting from the process wherein one or more edible yeasts, preferably including Rhizopus, is reacted with legumes, preferably beans and/or peas, algae, and optionally one or more other edible foodstuff, preferably nuts, whereby one or more of the legumes and/or nuts is ground (milled) to particles with a size of 7 mm or less. This process is hereinafter also referred to as a fermentation process and the mixture that is processed is referred to as a fermentation mixture. In this conventional, preferably essentially dry process, also known as a solid state fermentation process, there is essentially no free water in the fermenting mixture. Hereinafter this means that the amount of water that can be retrieved from the fermentation mixture using a Büchner vacuum filtration device with standard grade 3 filter paper, filled with 3 cm of mixture above the filter, at room temperature and within 10 minutes, is at most 10 percent by weight of the mixture (%w/w). During the process a mycelium network is formed, resulting in edible food products with increased content of proteins and phytochemicals, including anti oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins. The legumes are typically already rich in desired nutrients. However the use of algae in the mixture increases the amount of anti-oxidants, essential fatty acids and vitamins substantially, resulting in a food product with even better nutritional value.

Further it was found that the introduction of algae in the fermentation mixture resulted in a product with a texture, color and smell that people preferred over traditional tempe. Conversely, it was found that the claimed fermentation process allowed the use of algae in making a palatable food product with a texture, color and smell that people liked. More specifically, the texture, taste, and smell of a product made in the way as claimed, was much better than of a 3 product obtained by simply mixing algae with a fermentation product that was produced in the same way, except that the algae were not in the fermentation mixture.

It is known that the fermentation process is quite complex and sensitive.

Typically the growth of the yeast will be influenced by the ingredients used.

Therefore addition of algae and optionally nuts to the fermentation recipe was expected to lead to inferior or misdirected growth of the mycelium.

Surprisingly, the addition of algae and nuts to the fermentation process of legumes did not influence the growth of the yeast at all and the mycelium was essentially unaltered.

The at least partial milling of the ingredients was found to be beneficial because the consistency of the fermentation mixture (cake) was not only more uniform resulting in a better growth of the mycelium of the edible yeast, but also resulted in a product with a better mouthfeel.

According to an unproven theory, it is the combination of the at least partial milling of the legumes and/or nuts and the presence of algae, typically present as small particles, which provides the good mycelium growth and the improvement in taste, smell and mouthfeel.

Presumably the yeast is better able to attack the legumes and/or nuts, resulting in a favourable mix of peptides and aminoacids in the product to give the mentioned advantages.

Therefore the at least partial grinding is done to achieve legumes and/or nuts with a size of less than 7, 6, 6.5, 6, 5.5 or 5 mm.

In an embodiment at least part of the legume and the nuts are milled to this size.

In an embodiment all of the ingredients of the fermentation mixture are milled to this size.

In an embodiment all of the ingredients have a particle size of less than about 5, 4, or 3 mm since it was observed that larger particles will lead to the formation of air-pockets in the fermenting mixture, which prevents the yeast from interacting with all the ingredients, resulting in sub-optimal mycelium formation.

Typically, people will consider the food product of the invention to have reduced smell, a good taste, and acceptable mouthfeel.

It was surprising that also the smell of algae is hardly noted in the food product after fermentation making the food product of the invention suitable for, and acceptable to, a large part of the population.

In an embodiment the food product is further processed, which was found to make the food product palatable to essentially all people.

The fermentation process of the invention is, except for the selection of ingredients, of the conventional type.

If dried legumes are used, they are typically soaked and/or boiled in the conventional way before use to increase the bio-availability of the various beneficial legume compounds.

Boiling has the advantage that certain anti-nutrients are destroyed and that antioxidant levels may increase.

The legumes as used in the fermentation mixture suitably contain about 50% by weight of absorbed water.

It was surprisingly found that other processing of the mixed ingredients before fermentation was not needed.

Since energy requirements are reduced, the fermentation process is therefore preferably a process as claimed wherein the 4 ingredients are only milled in order to obtain the desired particle size, before fermentation is effected. Suitably fermentation is conducted at temperatures from 20, 25, or 30 up to 40, 37, or 35 °C for 12, 18, or 24 hours up to 72, 60, 48 hours, suitably 24 to 48 hours at a pH in the range of from 2.5, 3.5, 4to 7, 6, 5, or 4.5. Appropriate acids or bases can be used to adapt the pH of the fermentation mixture as needed. For acidification typically organic acids are used. Suitable acids include propionic acid, fumaric acid, malic acid, succinic acid, tartaric acid, and all other acids having GRAS status for food. In an embodiment acetic acid or sulfuric acid is used. Most preferably acetic acid is used. If the pH is to be raised then this is suitably done with carbonates, bicarbonates, or hydroxides, of alkali or alkali-earth metals, but also ammonia can be used.

The use of at least partially ground (milled) nuts in the fermentation mixture was found to even further reduce the smell and to remove bitterness from the resulting food product. More specifically, the combination of nuts and algae was surprisingly found to essential eliminate smell and/or bitternes in the food stuff of the invention.

The texture and mouthfeel of the food product can be largely controlled by the degree in which the legumes and/or nuts are ground. For a tempe-like product the legumes are mostly (>50% by weight of the legumes} not milled. While for a meat-like consistency it was found that the legumes and, if used, nuts, are best ground to a size of 1-5 mm.

The consumption of the food products of the invention by animals and humans provided them with desired nutrients. Like in conventional tempe, the food product can vary from dishes, to triangles, squares balls and egg like forms, or specific forms like logo's or like a hamburger patty. Particular for a product with meat-like mouthfeel, the products is suitably in the hamburger patty form.

Algae are typically used in a dry powder or flake form. However, in order to increase the sustainability of the food products of the invention, also algae can be used that are only partially dried, as long as the free water content of the fermentation mixture is 10 %w/w or less. Algae powder typically has a particle size of less than 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, or 50 micrometer, such as the product from spray drying an algae-containing aqueous stream. Algae flakes are typically broken flakes with a size less than 1 by 1 cm and a thickness less than 3, 2, or 1 mm, such as the product obtained by drying an algae-containing aqueous stream on a drum dryer. Algae used in this invention are preferable micro-algae. More preferably they are selected from, Chlorella sp, Spirulina sp, Nannochloropsis sp, Tetraselmis sp, Muriellopsis sp, Porhyridium, Haematococcus pluvalis, Phaeodactylum tricornum, Spirulina platensis, and Dunaliella salina.

In an embodiment the algae are selected from Chlorella vulgaris, Chlorella sorokiniana, Spirulina and Tetraselmis chui. All depending on allowance and acceptance for use in food. In 5 an embodiment they are selected from Chlorella sp and Spirulina sp because these algae have GRAS (generally recognized as safe) status for food products. The algae are suitably used in an amount of from 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 1.75, or 2 up to 20, 15, 10, 9, 8, 7, 8, or 5 %w/w of dry matter of the algae on the fermentation mixture. Although the use of micro-algae to make food products is known, see for instance WO 2019/071364, the benefits of using them with legumes in a fermentation process, and the benefits observed therein, have not been disclosed or suggested. The legumes are suitably selected from beans, peas, such as beans from the Fabaceae family plants. Very good results were obtained with soybeans, horse beans (also known as broad, fava, or faba beans), pinto, navy, kidney, pink and black beans, lentils, regular peas, chickpeas, and peanuts, each of which may be processed before use in the fermentation process of the invention (as in, for instance laba beans, which are usually processed soybeans).

The one or more yeasts are typically selected from Rhizopus, Mucor, Neurospora, and Amylomyxes. It is preferred, for availability as well as taste of the resulting food product, to include at least Rhizopus. Suitably the yeast comprises Rhizopus oligosporus and/or Rhizopus oryza, which both gave excellent results. The amount of yeast oculum used when making the fermentation mixture is suitably from 0.1, 0.25, 0.4, or 0.5 to 5, 4, 3, 2.5, or 2 g of dry spores per 1 kg of the fermentation mixture.

The optional nuts are typically selected from cashew nuts, almonds, pistachios, brazil nuts, walnuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, pecan nuts, processed cacao nuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, coconut and ginkgo nuts and kola nuts, but also sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, and/or acorns can be used. Preferably the nut used is cashew, almonds, brazil nuts or hazelnuts because they are highest in protein. However cashew, walnut, and hazelnut are preferred for their capacity to neutralize any odor of the fermented product. For increased sustainability preferably a nut is used that is locally grown. The nuts are typically used in an amount of 0-10 %w/w of dry matter of the nuts on the weight of the fermentation mixture.

The fermentation mixture can comprise other food ingredients as long as these are suitable for consumption and as long as they do not prevent mycelium growth in the fermentation mixture. For example, some salt may be present during fermentation, but it known that larger amounts of salt (NaCl) in the fermentation mixture (i.e. >5 %w/w) inhibits mycelium growth.

The food products of the invention can be further processed if so desired. For instance they can be co-processed, blended or injected with other food ingredients. For example by pre-cooking 6

(e.g. frying), drying, or incorporating into a sauce, such as a pasty sauce (e.g. meat sauce). In an embodiment, the product, for instance in the form of parts or patties, is marinated in a mixture of salt, flavouring agents, such as herbs, colourants and/or further food additives, such as oils and water, to adapt the food product.

However, to improve storage stability of the product also a step can be included in which the product is sterilized, for instance with one or more conventional steps of steam treatment or irradiation with ionizing radiation.

Other food ingredients that can be used in the fermentation process or in the further processing include salt, pepper, sugars, union, garlic, tomato, sesame seeds or oil, plum and other fruits, flavoring agents including further yeasts, aromatic oils, colorants, thickeners such as starch and modified cellulose polymers such as carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), oils, fats, flour, typically cereal flour, further vitamins, food supplements, such as iron-complexes, and the like.

As in the Indonesian cuisine, also soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and/or sambals (typically savory) can be added to alter the food product. However, also pre-baked goods can be added and, although less desired, these other food ingredients can be animal-based products. Depending on the exact processing of the food stuff and also depending on the ingredients used, particularly the amount of water, it can be beneficial to include one or more preservatives. They can be selected from the known types of sorbic acid, benzoic acid, lactic acid, propionic acid, and salts thereof, SO2, salts like sulfites, nitrites and nitrates, citrates, or products like cyclodextrins. However, some of these preservatives have raised health concerns. Therefore, they are to be selected carefully, and oregano or rosemary extracts, and/or hops may be suitable alternatives. Each of the preservatives mentioned can influence the taste and smell of the food product so, if used, they are to be selected such that they do not adversely affect taste, smell, and/or mouthfeel. If consumers would prefer to use the products of the invention without preservatives, then this is possible, provided storage condition and time is closely controlled as to prevent spillage of the product.

In an embodiment, the product resulting from the fermentation process is consumed by humans, as to provide a substitute for meat or, more generically, as a sustainable and acceptable food product with good nutritional value. In another embodiment the product is fed to animals, suitably chicken, pig or cattle. As reported above, it is known that animals can be fed with food comprising algae, typically in an amount of 0.5 — 16 %w/w, and that such food can be beneficial for chicks and piglets. However, the advantages of using algae and legumes that 7 are fermented have never been reported.

It is assumed that the fermentation process reduces the effect of tannins in the product and increases the availability of other food elements, such as omega fatty acids, vitamins, and proteins.

For this reason it is to be expected that the use of the fermented product in cattle, pig and chicken feed will allow an improved growth of the animal in good health.

It is to be understood that obvious variations to the described process and food product are included within the invention.

Furthermore any of the embodiments presented herein can be combined with any other embodiment and the disclosure is not limited to the examples given herein below.

Throughout this document, the terms mould, yeast, and fungus have been used interchangeably.

The reason for doing so is mainly that in the fermentation process there is no clear distinction possible between yeast and moulds, both belonging to fungi.

The word “comprising” and similar conjugations are used in the non-limiting sense, meaning that one or more of the items following the word are included, but items not mentioned are not excluded.

Further, reference to an element by “a” or “an” does not exclude the possibility that more of these element are present and thus usually means “at least one”. When a particle size is defined, it is the weight averaged particle size distribution, unless mentioned differently.

Last, when the word “food” or “feed” is used, it is meant to denote the fact that the product is suitable to be used as food or feed, which means that the product is not necessarily labeled as such.

The invention is exemplified by the following, non-limiting, examples.

Examples

Example 1 A batch of dried chickpeas (Cicer arietum ex Jumbo® Netherlands) was soaked at room temperature in tap water at 20 °C for 12 hours, then rinsed, drained, and cooked for 20 minutes in tap water acidified with acetic acid (7%) to pH 4. After cooking, the chickpeas were drained and dried at room temperature for 4 hours.

The dried chickpeas were mixed with different amounts of spirulina powder (Ever trust® Ltd, Hawaii) and different amounts of cashew nuts (unsalted ex Albert Heijn) with a fixed amount of 0.05 % by weight based on the total mixture (%w/w) dried Rhizopus spores (Topcultures®, Belgium). The mixtures were placed in a blender (Bosch® MCM68861 using the standard knife set for the blender bowl of 3.9 liter) and mixed and grounded to a uniform powder with particles of 0.1-5 mm.

The ground mixture was divided in portions of 50 gram.

Each portion was placed in a polymer petri dishes of 8 cm in diameter 8 and the dishes were placed in an incubator at 30 °C and a humidity of 70-75% for 48 hours.

Thereafter they were cooled to room temperature and examined within two hours.

The original ground mixture comprising chickpeas, algae and/or cashew nuts was transformed from a firm mixture into a firm solid mass covered in a white mycelium.

All samples were prepared in triplicate at the same time.

The food product (disc) was easily taken out of the petri dishes and kept its shape after removal.

The discs were cut in two halves and the inner side was examined by visual inspection.

The firmness of the material is qualitatively described.

The aroma, flavour, taste and mouthfeel were analyzed by a sensory panel of potential consumers.

The consumer panel was asked to fill in a standard form to judge the food product properties : aroma (unpleasant, ok, nice, great), flavour (sealike, grassy, nutty, beanlike, neutral), taste (very bitter, bitter, slightly bitter, not bitter) and firmness/mouthfeel (unpleasant-soppy, beanlike, soy-tempeh like, minced meat like, other but pleasant). The discs were further analyzed after baking for 2-3 minutes in a baking pan over a hot stove using 5 ml of sunflower oil (Albert Heijn®) per disc (series a). Other discs (series b) were analyzed after marinating in soy sauce (Ketjap Manis® ex Conimex) for 10 minutes at 20°C and baking for 2-3 minutes as for series a.

Results can be found in Table 1. Table 1: sample chickpea spirulina cashew Aroma Flavour Taste / Fimmness / number (Yow/w) nuts bitterness mouthfeel (%w/iw) (%w/w) after fermentation 1 100 0 0 unplea nutty bitter tempeh sant like / other but pleasant 2 80 20 0 ok sealike slightly other but bitter pleasant 3 80 15 5 ok sealike very other but slightly pleasant bitter 4 80 10 10 ok grassy very other but slightly pleasant bitter 5 80 5 15 nice neutral very other but slightly pleasant bitter 6 80 2 18 nice neutral very other but slightly pleasant bitter 7 80 1 19 nice neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant 8 80 0 20 nice neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant 9 after baking 1a 100 0 0 ok neutral bitter Tempe like without whole bean 2a 80 20 0 ok grassy slightly other but bitter pleasant 3a 80 15 5 ok grassy not bitter other but pleasant 4a 80 10 10 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant ba 80 5 15 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 6a 80 2 18 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 7a 80 1 19 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 8a 80 0 20 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant after marinating and baking * 1b 100 0 0 nice marinade not bitter Tempe taste like without whole bean 2b 80 20 0 nice marinade not bitter other but taste pleasant 3b 80 15 5 nice marinade not bitter other but taste pleasant 4b 80 10 10 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 5b 80 5 15 great marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 6b 80 2 18 great marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 7b 80 1 19 great marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 8b 80 0 20 great marinade notbitter minced taste meet like * different samples. When the food is marinated in a liquid sauce for 10 minutes, there is an increase in weight of 30% because the sauce is incorporated in the fermented food. The weight percentages given are the percentages before marinating the food.

The products of sample 8 lacked algae and therefore have an undesired low content of essential oils, vitamins and nutrients. The food product with at least 10 % cashew nuts is very suitable to be marinated and baked having properties most people like. The products of samples 2-7 provided the desired nutrients and had a pleasant taste. The food product of samples 3-7 provided the best taste after baking, with samples 4-7 being preferred when looking for a meat-like mouthfeel, particularly after further marinating and a second bake.

Example 2 A composition of 80 % (w/w) chickpeas, 5% spirulina and 15 % cashew nuts was evaluated to determine the influence of the particle size of the nuts.

The mixture was prepared the same way as described in example 1. The fermentation process was the same as described in example 1. The sensory analysis was performed according to the same procedure as describes in example 1 and the results are reported in table 2. Table 2: sample treatment of particle Fermentation Aroma Flavour Tast Firmness / number the nuts size of e / mouthfeel the nuts bitter {length ness in mm) after fermentation 9 cashew nuts 15-20 not compact and not well covered by mycelium whole mm Not suitable for further treatment 10 cashew nuts 3-5mm a smooth and nice neutral not firm cut with a compact bitter knive fermented disc 11 cashew nuts 0.5 — 5 a smooth and nice neutral not firm ground mm compact bitter manually fermented disc 12 cashew nuts 0.5-1 a smooth and nice neutral not very firm crushed mm compact bitter mechanically fermented in blender disc after marinating and baking 10b cashew nuts 3-5mm great marinade not minced cut with a taste bitter meat like knive 11b cashew nuts 05 —- 5 great marinade not minced ground mm taste bitter meat like manually 12b cashew nuts 0.5-1 great marinade not minced crushed mm taste bitter meat like mechanically in bender 11

All of the food product of samples 10-12 were considered attractive by the testpanel, with a | marinating and baking step being prefer:ed in order to arrive at a meat-like mouthfeel.

Example 3 A batch of dried field beans, Vicia faba, an old dutch variety obtained from Drentse Koolzaadunie, known for the high content of tannins among which vicine, which causes an off- flavor, are soaked at room temperature tap water (20 °C) for 18 hours, rinsed, drained, and cooked for 40 minutes in tap water acidified with acetic acid (7%) to pH 4. After cooking, the field beans were drained and dried at room temperature for 4 hours.

Then the dried and cooked field beans were mixed with different amounts of spirulina powder (Ever trust Ltd, Hawaii) and different amounts of walnut with a fixed amount of 0,05 %w/w dried Rhizopus spores (Topcultures, Belgium). The mixtures were placed in a blender and mixed and ground to a uniform powder with particles 0.1-5 mm.

Following the procedure of example 1, these mixtures were placed in polymer petri dishes of 9 cm in diameter and the dishes were placed in an incubator at 30 °C and humidity of 70-75% for 48 hours.

After 48 hours they were cooled to room temperature and examined within two hours.

The compact field bean mixtures were transformed into a firm solid mass covered in a white mycelium.

All samples were prepared in triplicate at the same time.

The food was easily taken out of the petri dishes.

After removing the discs from the dishes, the food product kept its disc form.

The discs were cut in two halves and the inner side is examined by visual inspection.

The firmness of the material is qualitatively described.

The aroma, flavour, taste and mouth feel have been analyzed by a sensory panel of potential consumers.

The consumer panel was asked to fill in a standard form where the tempeh properties were given: aroma (unpleasant, ok, nice, great), flavour (unpleasant, sea- like, grassy, nutty, bean-like, neutral), taste (very bitter, bitter, slightly bitter, not bitter) and firmness/mouthfeel (unpleasant-soppy, bean-like, soy tempeh like, minced meat like, other but pleasant). Following the procedure of example 1, the food dishes are analyzed without treatment, after baking for 2-3 minutes and after marinating in soy sauce for 10 minutes followed by baking for 2-3 minutes.

The results are compiled in Table 3. Table 3: sample field spirulina walnut Aroma Flavour Taste / Firmness/ number beans bitterness mouthfeel (Wwiw%) (ww%) (Ww%) after fermentation 13 100 0 0 unpleasant unpleasant bitter tempeh like / other 12

14 80 20 0 ok unpleasant bitter other but / grassy pleasant 80 15 5 ok grassy less bitter other but pleasant 16 80 10 10 ok grassy slightly other but bitter pleasant 17 80 5 15 ok neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant 18 80 2 18 ok neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant 19 80 1 19 ok neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant 80 0 20 ok neutral slightly other but bitter pleasant after baking 13a 100 0 0 ok neutral slightly other bitter 14a 80 20 0 ok grassy slightly other but bitter pleasant 15a 80 15 5 ok grassy slightly other but bitter pleasant 16a 80 10 10 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 17a 80 5 15 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 18a 80 2 18 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 19a 80 1 19 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant 20a 80 0 20 nice neutral not bitter other but pleasant after marinating and baking * 13b 100 0 0 nice marinade slightly other taste bitter 14b 80 20 0 nice marinade not bitter other but taste pleasant 15b 80 15 5 nice marinade not bitter other but taste pleasant 16b 80 10 10 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 17b 80 5 15 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 18b 80 2 18 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 19b 80 1 19 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meat like 20b 80 0 20 nice marinade not bitter minced taste meet like * different samples.

When the food is marinated in a liquid sauce for 10 minutes, there is an increase in weight of 30% because the sauce is incorporated in the fermented food.

The weight percentages given are the percentages before marinating the food. 13

The products of sample 20 lacked algae and therefore have an undesired low content of essential oils, vitamins and nutrients. The products of this example are the most sustainable to produce in northern Europe since both field beans and walnuts grow there locally. Like before, samples 16-19, after marinating and baking provided a food product with a structure that was appreciated by the test panel and referenced to as minced-meat-like. Clauses

1. Food product obtainable by fermenting a fermentation mixture, preferably with a free water content less than 10 %w/w, with an edible yeast, preferably Rhizopus, wherein the fermentation mixture comprises one or more legumes, one or more algae, and optionally one or more further food products, preferably including nut, whereby a mycelium is formed during fermentation.

2. Food product of clause 1 wherein one or more of the solid ingredients of the fermentation mixture is ground before fermentation.

3. Food product of clause 2 whereof the weight averaged particle size of the ground ingredient is from 10 micron to 7 mm.

4. Food product of any one of clauses 1-3 wherein the algae are dried micro-algae.

5. Food product of clause 4 wherein the dried microalgae is a powder with a weight averaged particle size of less than 500 um.

6. Food product of any one of the previous clauses wherein the fermentation mixture comprises nut.

7. Food product of any one of the previous clauses wherein the fermentation mixture comprises one or more additional food ingredients selected from salt, pepper sugars, onion, garlic, tomato, sesame (seed or oil), plum or other fruit, flavoring agents including further yeasts, aromatic oils, colorants, thickeners such as starch and modified cellulose polymers such as CMC, oils, fats, flour, typically cereal flour, further vitamins, food supplements, such as iron-complexes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and/or sambals.

8. Food product of any one of the previous clauses wherein the fermented product is combined with one or more additional food ingredients selected from salt, pepper sugars, onion, garlic, tomato, sesame (seed or oil), plum or other fruit, flavoring agents including further yeasts, aromatic oils, colorants, thickeners such as starch and modified cellulose polymers such as CMC, oils, fats, flour, typically cereal flour, further vitamins, food supplements, such as iron- complexes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and/or sambals.

9. Process for making a food product of any one of the previous clauses comprising the step of fermenting a fermentation mixture with one or more edible yeasts, preferably Rhizopus, preferably with a free water content less than 10 %w/w, whereby the fermentation mixtures 14 comprises one or more legumes, one or more algae, and optionally one or more other food products, preferably nut, whereby a mycelium is formed during fermentation at a temperature of 20 to 40 °C at a pH of 2.5-6, in 12 tot 72 hours.

10. Use of a food product of any one of the clauses 1-8 to provide a human or animal with nutrients.

Claims (10)

Conclusions 1. Food product obtained by fermenting a fermentation mixture with an edible yeast, preferably Rhizopus, wherein the fermentation mixture comprises one or more legumes, one or more algae, and optionally one or more other foodstuffs, preferably including nut, wherein during the ferment a mycelium is formed. A food product according to claim 1 wherein one or more of the solid ingredients of the fermentation broth is ground before use. A food product according to claim 2 wherein the particle size of the ground ingredient is between 10 microns and 7 mm. Food product according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the algae are dried microalgae. A food product according to claim 4 wherein the dried microalgae is a powder with an average particle size of less than 500 microns. A food product according to any one of the preceding claims wherein nut is present in the fermentation mixture. A food product according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein in the fermentation mixture one or more of the food products selected from salt, pepper, sugars, onion, garlic, tomato, sesame seed or oil, plum and other fruits, flavourings, including yeasts, aromatic oils, dyes, thickeners such as starch and modified cellulose, such as CMC, oils, fats, flour, mostly a cereal product, vitamins, nutritional supplements, such as iron complexes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and sambals, has been used. A food product according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fermented product is mixed with one or more of the food products selected from salt, pepper, sugars, onion, garlic, tomato, sesame seed or oil, plum and other fruits, flavourings, including yeasts, aromatic oils, dyes, thickeners such as starch and modified cellulose, such as CMC, oils, fats, flour, mostly a cereal product, vitamins, 16 nutritional supplements, such as iron complexes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and sambals, are combined. A process for making a food product according to any one of the preceding claims comprising fermenting a fermentation mixture with an edible yeast, preferably Rhizopus, wherein the fermentation mixture contains one or more legumes, one or more algae, optionally one or more other foodstuffs, including preferably nut, where a mycelium is formed during fermentation at a temperature of 20 to 40 °C in a period of 12 to 72 hours at a pH of 2.5 - 6. Use of a food product according to any one of claims 1-8 for feeding humans or animals. 17