Development of Hybrid Semi-Hard Cheese: The Potential of Incorporating Pea and Faba Bean Proteins

• Producing hybrid semi-hard cheese with 20% plant proteins was proven to be feasible. • Centrifugation was necessary to replace pressing to produce hybrid semi-hard cheese. • Emulsification was an efficient processing step in including plant proteins in the matrix. • The type of plant protein and processing methods strongly influenced the textural properties. The growing demand for sustainable and plant-based food alternatives has driven the development of hybrid cheese. Hybrid cheese is made by mixing milk with plant proteins, followed by cheesemaking processing steps. The threshold for noticeable texture deterioration is often identified around the 15–20% plant protein concentration range. Therefore, this study investigated the feasibility of producing hybrid semi-hard cheese, in which 20% milk protein was replaced by pea or faba bean protein. Hybrid cheese milk samples were made by mixing pea protein emulsions or faba bean protein emulsions with milk, and then processed into semi-hard cheeses on a miniature scale. To prevent loss of plant proteins in the whey, plant-based emulsions were prepared first. The emulsification process was optimized by varying processing parameters, including heating temperature (60 and 85°C) and homogenization pressure (5 and 30 MPa), to improve their incorporation into the cheese. Under static conditions, hybrid cheese milk formed a weak gel, which became stronger upon centrifugation simulating pressing. The protein yield of both the reference milk-based cheese and the hybrid cheeses was similar and the SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that plant proteins were retained within the hybrid cheese matrix. However, textural profile analysis showed that the hybrid cheese was softer than the natural cheese. This study indicates that both plant protein fractions show potential for the production of hybrid semi-hard cheese.