Abstract

Pulse protein ingredients offer opportunities to solve some of the emerging problems related to food andnutrition, such as protein allergenicity, obesity and the ever growing world population. Moreover, with the increasing cost ofcereal grains in recent years incorporation of pulse proteins in the development of value-added food products may offeran attractive opportunity for food manufacturers. Peas, chickpeas, lentils and beans all contain a broad range of essentialamino acids which are well balanced when combined with cereal proteins. The incorporation of pulses in food formulationrelies on their multiple functional properties. Emulsification, solubility, foaming, water and fat binding capacity of pulseprotein ingredients can be modified through specific processing treatments and optimized for specific food matrices(beverages, meat, bakery, extruded products etc). In addition to their functional and nutritional properties, the presence ofbioactive peptides within pulse proteins should further motivate industries to consider their application in the developmentof novel enriched food products.