Could Your Favorite Ketchup Become a Source of Protein?

Algae in Ketchup? A Delicious Protein Innovation: Adding just 3% algal protein can give your favorite ketchup a nutritional boost.

Who said ketchup can’t be healthy? What if your favorite tomato ketchup could also deliver a protein boost?

Protein-Packed Ketchup: A Tasty, Tangy, Nutritious Twist

Protein is being added to many foods, from breakfast cereals to pasta, but it has not yet become common in condiments. Researchers have now developed a protein-enriched tomato ketchup using protein extracted from algae. Taste testers preferred ketchup containing up to 3% algal extract. They found that it still had the familiar sweet and tangy taste, along with the expected red color.

The findings of the study are published in the journal ACS Food Science & Technology (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Physicochemical, Nutritional, Microbial, Sensory, and Antinutritional Evaluation of Tomato Ketchup Fortified with Chlorella vulgaris Protein Isolates

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Can Algae Make Tomato Ketchup More Nutritious?

“We wanted to improve the nutritional value of a widely consumed condiment using a sustainable protein source,” says Parise Adadi, the corresponding author of the study. “Ketchup is familiar, shelf-stable, and suitable for incorporating functional ingredients.”

Chlorella vulgaris: The Microalgae with a Protein Punch

Although many protein-added foods get the enrichment from whey, pea, or soy sources, Adadi and colleagues wanted to try a potentially more sustainable alternative: microalgae that are rich in protein. “Chlorella vulgaris can be cultivated rapidly throughout the year using comparatively little land and freshwater, making it a potentially more resource-efficient protein source than many terrestrial crops,” says Adadi.

Ketchup Gets a Protein Boost—Thanks to Algae!

Previously, another research team incorporated algae proteins into vegan seafood mimics, where the microalgae’s fishy taste complimented the squid-ring analogues that they 3D-printed and deep-fried. For ketchup, the challenge was adding algal protein in a way that wouldn’t change the condiment’s distinct flavor.

Protein in Every Squeeze: The New Ketchup Recipe

The researchers accomplished this by extracting the proteins from C. vulgaris. Then they developed ketchup recipes containing 1% to 13% algal protein along with typical ingredients such as plum tomatoes, sugar, salt, vinegar, spices, and citric acid. After they bottled and pasteurized the ketchup samples, including a plain ketchup with no added algae, a panel of 15 people tasted them. The panelists shared that:

• Samples with 1% and 3% added protein retained the familiar sweet, tangy, and mildly spiced flavor, and had only a subtle algal note.
• At 5% and 13% added protein, the algal taste and greenish color became more noticeable, reducing the samples’ acceptability despite the higher protein content.

Ketchup Gets Healthy

In addition, compared to the plain ketchup, the samples with 3% and 5% algal extracts contained two to three times more protein, as well as higher amounts of essential amino acids, minerals — particularly sodium and iron — and antioxidants.

Protein-Rich Ketchup: A Tasty Step Toward Better Nutrition

These results suggest that a moderate addition of algal protein could appeal to consumers and enhance nutritional value. The researchers’ future work will include larger consumer studies, shelf-life tests, and product development at commercial scales.

Reference:

1. Physicochemical, Nutritional, Microbial, Sensory, and Antinutritional Evaluation of Tomato Ketchup Fortified with Chlorella vulgaris Protein Isolates – (https://pubs.acs.org/afsthl/article-abstract/6/7/2184/5177410/Physicochemical-Nutritional-Microbial-Sensory-and?redirectedFrom=fulltext)

Source-Eurekalert