Printability, Texture, and Sensory Trade-Offs for 3D Printed Potato with Added Proteins and Lipids

Three-dimensional (3D) food printing offers novel manufacturing capabilities for complex geometry fabrication, customization, and personalized nutrition for consumers. However, it is challenging to reliably print foods to form specified 3D designs with appealing and healthy ingredients. Here, 3D printed foods for improving appeal and/or nutrition were created by adding protein (pea/cricket) and lipid (butter) powder additives to mashed potatoes. Properties were measured for shape retention, dimensional accuracy, and fidelity to assess printability; moisture content, firmness, and total work to determine textural properties; and taste, mouthfeel, smell, and appearance ratings for the partcipants' sensory assessment. Adding variable amounts of protein and lipids enabled the modulation of print fidelity, firmness, and sensory appeal. Increasing print fidelity improved food desirability (R2 = 0.78; linear regression), while lowering firmness improved mouthfeel (R2 = 0.77; linear regression). The addition of butter to potatoes increased fidelity, fat content, and taste, while the addition of pea and cricket increased fidelity and protein content while reducing taste. Results demonstrate the merits of adding proteins and lipids to improve food printability, with variable trade-offs regarding printability, sensory ratings, and nutrition. These trade-offs enable personalized printing on-demand for future delivery of appealing foods.