Egg is the most important part of the diet of many people. Starting with omelets and scrambled egg to egg-based curries, baked goods and spreads, there are many dishes in various cuisines which are highly dependent on eggs. But what about those people who are allergic to eggs? There are many people worldwide who are not supposed to eat eggs and egg-based products due to religious reasons. Due to the increasing trend of vegan diet, people are shifting towards plant-based foods. Due to extensive commercialization and huge requirement of eggs in the market, the cruelty on the birds is increasing to get more number of eggs which is also demotivating people to consume eggs.
But now, the question is how the people will fulfil their nutrient requirement? Everyone is aware that egg has all essential amino acids required for growth and hence, is a complete protein. If we are not consuming eggs, there should be an equivalent alternative available.
To combat this problem, egg-less egg (or vegan egg) is the major solution. It’s a great revolution in the field of plant-based food. It has the same taste and texture as egg products, better nutrient properties without cholesterol and most importantly, cruelty free. According to the report published in 2017 by Netherlands business support office in Hyderabad, India is the third-largest egg producer in the world with per capita 68 eggs per annum consumption rate. Since high consumption rates will be increasing the cruelty on birds in hatcheries to produce a large number of eggs, this is the right time to shift from chicken eggs to plant-based eggs.
Many questions arise in mind after hearing about vegan eggs. How is it possible to create an egg-like product from plant ingredients only? How does it look like? How to get a peculiar sulfurous smell of egg from plant ingredients? Will the vegan egg coagulate in same way as chicken egg while making omelet or scrambled egg? Can it be used in baking also I place of eggs?
Well, the answer to all the questions is YES, it is a perfect replacement of chicken eggs. Although plant-based eggs are not intact eggs rather available in liquid egg form, it gives taste and texture similar to chicken eggs. Many companies such as JUST, Follow your heart, Atlantic natural foods, The vegg, etc. has already launched a range of egg replacers as egg alternative for cooking and baking.
Talking about the science behind this, mung bean protein, soy protein and algal protein are found to be most promising for egg alternative due to their coagulation properties similar to real eggs. They are found to give same texture as scrambled egg
when processed similarly. In JUST Egg, the major ingredients are mung bean protein isolate as protein source and texturing agent, canola oil for mouthfeel, gellan gum for consistency, natural carrot and turmeric extracts for colour, natural flavours and other food additives to provide taste and texture similar to egg. Other than JUST eggs, other companies are utilizing soy protein, algal protein, cereal proteins and starches for giving same texture profile. Since egg has distinctive Sulphur-like flavour, black salt is generally used to provide such characteristic to plant-based eggs.
To make this product suitable for baking and spreads, plant based lecithin such as soy lecithin, Sunflower and canola lecithin can be added to provide it an emulsification property required for mayonnaise and baked products. When legumes are cooked in liquid, some of the proteins, starches and fibres migrate into the liquid. This liquid is known as aquafaba and is utilized to provide emulsification and foam stabilization property to eggless egg.
Well, the market for the vegan egg is huge worldwide. JUST, formally known as Hampton Creek, said that they have sold the JUST eggs equivalent to 10 million chicken eggs in one year after launch. CEO of JUST, Josh Tetrick, said that 77% of the people, who preferred JUST eggs, are meat eaters which imply that the sales of vegan eggs are not limited to vegetarian people only rather people are interested to shift from animal diet to plant-based diet. According to the plant based food association, the growth in the sector of plant based eggs is more than the growth in plant based milk or meat.
High consumption of egg is quite evident in India. Asia’s first Mumbai based start-up EVO foods by CEO Kartik Dixit and COO Sharaddha Bhansali has the motive of launching liquid egg replacers in India to promote the pattern of plant based diet. Currently the company is in research phase and will soon launch their egg alternatives in the market.
Since sustainability is the utmost need of the hour, shifting from chicken egg to plant-based eggs is one of the greatest solution. It'll not also decrease the burden of animal agriculture but also increase the scope of healthy foods in market with no compromise with taste.
References:
JUST egg: www.ju.st
Forbes: Egg-less Eggs Are Next To Crack Into The Plant-Based Marketplace by Brian Kateman
Quartz: Plant-based eggs are starting to compete with the real thing by Chase Purdy
· The Good food Institute: Plant-based egg alternatives - Optimizing for functional properties and applications by Miranda Grizio and Liz Specht
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