Consumer Acceptability and Temporal Sensory Evaluation of Beans Across Cooking Methods

Abstract

Dry beans have gained so much popularity in many local, regional and global cuisines because of their nutritional value. A diet that includes beans is an excellent source of minerals and essential nutrients and provides numerous health benefits. Replacing meat with beans is considered a nutritious alternative because of their high protein content and overall nutritional value. Hence, beans are regarded as a suitable alternative in vegan and plant-based diets. In addition, because beans are both nutritious and affordable they have long been recognized as an economical alternative to animal protein. However, one of the key sensory characteristics associated with beans and bean-based food is their beany aroma. This characteristic is considered undesirable by many consumers and limits the full utilization and potential of the crop despite its rich nutritional profile. Beany aroma is influenced by compounds such as hexanal, 2-pentyl furan, 1-octen-3-one that contribute to this undesirable flavor. Cooking has been shown to reduce the intensity of beany aroma, thereby improving the sensory quality of bean products. This work investigates how different cooking methods affect the sensory profiles of various beans. The specific objectives of this study were: 1) to evaluate overall consumer acceptability and sensory profiles of selected bean varieties subjected to different cooking methods; 2) to utilize the Temporal Check All That Apply (TCATA) method to evaluate the evolution/dynamic perception of aroma and flavor attributes of dry beans prepared using different cooking methods; and 3) to integrate CATA (a method where panelists check all attributes they perceive from a predefined list after the product has been evaluated) and TCATA methods to evaluate the degree of alignment between consumer perceptions and the temporal sensory perceptions provided by a semi-trained panel. Three different bean types (i.e. black bean, pinto bean and Bambara bean) were subjected to four different cooking methods: slow cooking, baking, pressure cooking and boiling. A consumer study (n=76) was conducted to determine consumer acceptability and sensory profiles of each bean type subjected to all the cooking methods. Also, TCATA (n=10) was conducted to determine the evolution of attributes over time during evaluation. The results from the consumer study showed significant sensory differences among beans subjected to different cooking methods. Samples with low beany aroma intensity ratings were subsequently rated higher in overall liking, indicating consumers prefer richer, cooked, less beany flavors. This implies and emphasizes that cooking method plays an important role in shaping flavor profiles. Results from the TCATA evaluation, which captured the evolution of attribute perception over time, indicated that beany and potato/starchy attributes were dominant throughout the evaluation period. Although these two attributes were dominant, cooking method influenced the complexity and expression of secondary attributes, resulting in distinct sensory profiles among the samples. Integration of the CATA and TCATA data showed some degree of alignment, suggesting that TCATA may help identify sensory characteristics associated with consumer perceptions. Overall, this work offers meaningful insights into the effects of processing on the sensory profile of the three bean types; however, future studies should examine additional bean varieties and processing conditions to further expand these findings.