Physicochemical and sensory characteristics of soya protein isolate hydrolysates with added substrate‐like amino acids

Soya protein isolate (SPI) with or without added substrate‐like amino acid was subject to enzymatic hydrolysis catalysed by commercial proteases (Alcalase 2.4 L, flavourzyme and pancreatin). Addition of a small amount of amino acids (amino acid: SPI = 1: 2500, mol g^?1) during hydrolysis would cause a significantly (P < 0.05) reduced protein recovery, increased degree of hydrolysis, and altered amino acid composition and antioxidant activities of SPI hydrolysates. The SPI hydrolysates prepared with added Asp, Arg or Lys exhibited a higher antioxidant activity than the control. The bitterness of SPI hydrolysates was largely reduced upon addition of Met, Asp or Glu during hydrolysis, whilst the umami taste and mouthfeel‐liking were remarkably increased. Therefore, adding amino acid during hydrolysis is a feasible and beneficial approach to improve both the functional and sensory properties of SPI hydrolysate.