Adding any plant-based protein to sandwich bread comes with challenges. Thankfully, the toolbox of protein ingredients continues to grow.

“Adding protein can affect bread formulations in several ways, from flavor and texture to mixing time and shelf life,” said Jeff Hodges, manager, bakery, snacks and confections applications, ADM. “The first step is for bakers to use high-quality ingredients that minimize potential off-notes. In some cases, flavor modulation technology may be needed to support mouthfeel and other sensory attributes.”

Then there’s the water content factor. Proteins like to bind water. From a cost perspective, it’s desirable to increase the moisture content, as water is less expensive than most bread ingredients.

“The biggest challenges to overcome are absorption, dispersion and rheological factors,” said David Guilfoyle, design manager, bakery, IFF. “That’s because proteins absorb water differently, so the baker may need to add more water to a formulation, which in turn dilutes the protein content of the finished product.”

Such dilutions may impact the bread’s nutrition profile and any content claims. These numbers are often moving targets but can be achieved by blending proteins.

“Our high-protein solutions that work well in sandwich breads include wheat protein concentrates; soy concentrates, isolates and flours; and pea isolates,” Hodges said. “Ancient grain, bean and legume flours can also increase overall fiber content. We frequently encourage manufacturers to incorporate recognizable whole grain and seed ingredients, like flax, quinoa and chia, to visually convey wholesomeness. These solutions, as well as our sorghum flour, also work well within gluten-free systems.

“We maximize ingredient diversity and protein content by combining our plant proteins and taking the best characteristics from each to help achieve high PDCAAS,” Hodges said. “Soy is particularly useful for protein fortification because it is a complete protein.”

Functionally, soy flour can improve the elasticity of doughs and enhance the crumb structure of breads, according to Dave Lindhorst, technical services manager, Cargill. Another functional protein is vital wheat gluten.

“Vital wheat gluten is a superhero when it comes to the bakery, with strength, elasticity and binding properties among its many functional attributes,” Lindhorst said. “It’s best known for its contributions to breads, where it aids in mixing, dough handling, loaf volume and finished product quality, but it can also help brands create high-protein breads, with 75% protein on a dry matter basis. However, due to its exceptional functionality, there are limits to how much vital wheat gluten can be added to a bread formula before it transforms a loaf into something resembling a rubber ball.

“With all proteins, there is a natural limitation of how much you can include before the sensory impacts around taste and texture outweigh any nutritional gains,” Lindhorst said. “Blends of proteins tend to work best, helping to mitigate flavor considerations, water absorption challenges and similar concerns.”

Ingredion Inc. offers pulse-based proteins for protein fortification of sandwich bread. Pulses are the dried seeds of the legume family, and are packed with protein, fiber and micronutrients.

“Ingredion’s deep pulse portfolio includes flours, concentrates and isolates, all of which are grown and manufactured domestically in North America,” said Erin Nese, principal technologist, technical service. “Pulse flour offerings include yellow pea, yellow lentil, fava bean and chickpea. Many pulse flours have protein contents higher than wheat flour and commonly used gluten-free flours.”

Yellow pea, yellow lentil and fava bean concentrates contain 55% to 60% protein, on a dry basis. Isolates are higher, with yellow pea isolate ranging from 80% to 84% protein content.

“Adding pulse-based ingredients to traditional bread can boost protein content,” said Canan Ozer, principal technologist, plant-based protein applications at Ingredion. “Both pulse concentrates and isolates can enhance protein; however, using pulse concentrates, which have balanced nutrition profiles, can also boost fiber and micronutrient content.”

Traditional wheat flour is an incomplete protein source due to its limited amount of the essential amino acid lysine. In contrast, most pulse flours are abundant in lysine.

“By incorporating pulse flours into wheat-based bread recipes, one can enhance the overall lysine content and amino acid score,” Ozer said. “In addition to lysine from a nutritional standpoint, lysine can impact browning in baked goods. Lysine reacts with sugars during the Maillard reaction, contributing to non-enzymatic browning.”

In studies completed by Ingredion, adding fava bean protein concentrate to bread resulted in increased crust color development. The baker may need to adjust bake times or temperatures to achieve the desired color.

“Pulses can also impart unfavorable characteristics, including a robust beany flavor and intense aroma,” Ozer said. “To help overcome this challenge, it is important to choose the cleanest-tasting pulse proteins for a formulation. Ingredion offers a line of de-flavored pulse flours and proteins.”

Nuts, seeds and whole grains may also be a source of plant protein. The addition of these visible inclusions, however, can add stress to dough systems.

“Working to achieve optimum ingredient and formulation of protein breads is key to avoid texture issues,” said Ken Ruud, director of innovation, Ardent Mills Bakery Resources. “Adding protein inclusions can increase dead weight in the dough and lead to collapsing. We have met this concern by developing proprietary protein flour blends that give the dough the strength it needs to yield a great looking and tasting loaf while still providing the plant-based protein that many consumers are seeking.”

Enzymes are often included in high-protein breads to assist with maintaining softness. Because they have higher moisture contents, an antimicrobial may be helpful.

“The addition of a dough relaxer is necessary to get an acceptable pan flow during processing,” said Sergio Machado, senior director, research development and applications, Corbion. “Due to high moisture content, the oven profile of time and temperature needs to be adjusted to ensure enough moisture bake-off to minimize mold issues during shelf life.”

Proteins produced by precision fermentation are gaining momentum. While the technology has been around for more than 30 years, it’s only now being recognized for its potential in feeding the growing population by producing food and food ingredients in more earth-friendly ways.

As the name suggests, it’s a precise technology. Bioengineering techniques are used to program microorganisms by giving them a specific genetic code to produce a compound when fermented under precise conditions. The genetic code is the exact copy of the DNA sequence found in a digitized database on animal or plant DNA sequences; however, it requires no animal or plant involvement. The result is the molecularly identical ingredient made by microorganisms.

Onego Bio uses the technology to produce animal-free egg proteins. Onego Bio’s ingredient is bio-identical to ovalbumin, the primary protein in egg white. It provides the same functionality and nutrition without the environmental, ethical and safety-related concerns of eggs from chickens.

The animal-free egg proteins can directly replace egg white powder and even whole eggs in recipes.

Onego’s egg protein contains all essential amino acids, has a PDCAAS of 1.0 and is more than 90% protein.

“Its unique properties make it a promising solution for addressing the challenges in the baking market,” said Chris Landowski, co-founder and chief technology officer at Onego Bio. “It provides crucial functionalities in bread making, such as foaming, emulsification and gelation. Furthermore, protein is well known to play a key role in forming the viscoelastic-network structure necessary for aeration and softness desired in baked goods.”

Perfect Day uses precision fermentation to produce animal-free whey proteins. And ImaginDairy, an Israeli-based food tech startup, now owns and operates industrial-scale precision fermentation production lines focused on the production of all types of animal-free dairy ingredients. These ingredients have long been used to increase the protein content of sandwich bread, while also contributing functional benefits to the dough.

It’s important to note that because animal-free egg and dairy proteins are genetic duplications of the animal-based formats, the same allergies and sensitivities exist for consumers, and the FDA requires this disclosure.

With consumer desire to increase protein intake showing no signs of abating, bakers can expect to see more options added to their toolbox of ingredients. It appears the best thing since sliced bread is sliced bread fortified with protein.

This article is an excerpt from the June 2024 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Protein, click here.