Plant tissue-based scaffolds filled with oil function as adipose tissue mimetics

Cellulosic scaffolds filled with oil were designed to replicate animal adipose tissues. Many plants are structured as polysaccharide-based cellular solids. They maintain their integrity after drying, can serve as a scaffold for incorporating fat, and do not lose integrity upon heating, thus resembling native adipose tissue. Carrots, broccoli, and asparagus were freeze-dried and subsequently filled with peanut oil, its glycerolysis product (GP), and the oleogel of this GP. Oleogel-filled scaffolds displayed high oil binding capacity (≥95%), and an oil loss resembling that of adipose tissue. In addition, the texture of oleogel-filled asparagus and broccoli tissue closely resembled that of beef and pork adipose tissues, respectively. Plant scaffolds closely emulated the temperature-dependent rheological behavior of adipose tissue. These new materials could significantly improve the quality of plant-based meat analogues, such as burgers and sausages, by preventing the thermal softening of the material upon cooking and excessive oil loss.