Lentils, peas and beans in a plant-based burger
What it found
A burger made from lentils, peas and black beans kept most of its protein after cooking but lost a lot of its fiber.
In lab tests it held its shape well and soaked up only a moderate amount of oil.
What they found
Protein and fiber
The raw burger had high protein at 8.15% and crude fiber at 6.33%. After cooking, protein stayed about the same but fiber dropped noticeably.
Cooking loss and shape
The burger lost a moderate amount of weight during cooking, about 13.10% with a small variation of 0.69%. It shrank only slightly in diameter, about 1.94% with a variation of 0.22%, and in thickness, about 7.75% with a variation of 0.80%, so it kept its shape well.
Oil and water
The burger soaked up a controlled amount of oil, about 19.62% with a variation of 0.42%. It held on to a moderate amount of water, about 58.79% with a variation of 1.08%.
Texture after cooking
After cooking, the burger's internal network became more elastic. Lab imaging showed a compact and even structure.
What the authors conclude
“To sum up, given its qualities and richness, especially in proteins, the elaborated vegetarian burger could constitute a substitute for the meat-based one.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say the burger has good qualities and is rich in protein.
- They suggest it could be a substitute for a meat-based burger.
How it was done
More shoppers want plant-based meat substitutes, and legumes like lentils are high in protein and fiber, making them a good base for such products.
The authors made a plant-based burger from lentils, peas and black beans and used a three-component mixture design to work out the best proportions of each. They then measured the burger's nutrition, cooking behavior, texture and structure before and after cooking.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This study only looked at how the burger was made and how it behaved during cooking. It did not test how it affects people's health.
- The results are for this specific mix of lentils, peas and black beans. Other recipes or cooking methods might give different results.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- Declarations. Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
- Authors work at
- University of Bejaia, Algeria; University of Jijel, Algeria; University of M'sila, Algeria
The paper
- Title
- Optimization of Lentils, Peas, and Beans-based Vegetable Burger Formulation Using D-optimal Mixture Design
- Type
- Study
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Oukhmanou-Bensidhoum S, Merzouk H, Brahmi F, et al (2025). Optimization of Lentils, Peas, and Beans-based Vegetable Burger Formulation Using D-optimal Mixture Design. Plant foods for human nutrition (Dordrecht, Netherlands). doi:10.1007/s11130-025-01417-5PubMed 41055808DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error