Fermentation of almond-based gel incorporated with double emulsion (W1/O/W2): A study on gel properties and effectiveness of double emulsion as a fat replacer

The contributions and importance of the water-in-oil-in-water (W1/O/W2; W1:W2 = 40:60; W1/O: W2 = 20:80) type double emulsion (DE) to the physicochemical characteristics of almond-based gel were identified in this study. This study investigated from two perspectives: 1) the effect of the amount of DE addition on the gel properties of almond-based yoghurt and 2) the comparison between samples made with and without DE. The hardness, water holding capacity, and viscosity value of almond-based gel increased when the DE addition increased from 5, 10, 20, to 30 % due to the composition variance. Comparing the sample made with DE structure and made without DE, a significant difference was only found between samples incorporated with 30 % DE (D30) and its counterpart control sample C30. A significantly higher (p < 0.05) apparent viscosity and hardness values were observed in sample D30 (0.27 Pa·s; 18.25 g) compared to its counterpart control sample C30 (0.21 Pa·s; 15.09 g). A sensory evaluation revealed similar preferences for both samples (D30 and C30). In summary, the presence of a double emulsion structure contributed to the improved texture, microstructure and quality of almond-based gels. This approach can potentially guide the future production of double emulsion-incorporated plant-based gels.