Researchers have developed a cheese that looks, tastes, and feels like paneer—and yet is one-quarter peas. This new dairy-plant hybrid may be more appealing to consumers than completely plant-based cheese alternatives, and could still help reduce some of the impacts linked to conventional cheese.
Most attempts at alternative cheeses have experimented with plant-based ingredients to coax them into something resembling the real thing. But few have got very close to the unique flavors and textures of cheese. So in the new Food Research International study, the researchers decided to take a different approach, and try a plant-dairy hybrid—something that has rarely been studied, they say.
As their test cheese they chose paneer, a unique dairy product that retains its structural integrity when heated, unlike most other cheeses that would melt. This quality made paneer ideal for the heating processes that would be required to make the plant-dairy protein matrix or ‘gel’ in the researchers’ experiments.
For these, the scientists prepared different paneer mixtures, made of milk proteins that contained increasing percentages of protein made from peas—the regular green garden variety. In one batch, the ratio was 25% milk proteins and 75% peas for instance; in another the split was 50-50. One batch contained a quarter pea protein and three-quarters milk protein. These mixtures were all heated to 80°C to form the coagulated protein gel, then pressed, drained and molded into edible blocks.
In turn, those underwent a series of rigorous machine tests to determine their texture, taste, and mouthfeel. Detecting instruments took a read of the fat and moisture content of the cheese, and also scanned the cubes’ interiors to see how porous or well-bonded the protein gel appeared. A machine called a texture analyzer then ran some crucial tests that determined the springiness, resilience, and overall chewiness of the cheesy blocks: this instrument is able to simulate the biting pressure of a human mouth, and so give a realistic read on what the eating experience would be like.
The experiments showed that with too much pea protein, the cheese would simply crumble under pressure, which is not what the researchers were aiming for. Blocks of cheese containing a higher ratio of pea protein also had a much coarser, looser structure.
But there was a sweet spot: the mixture containing 75% milk proteins and 25% pea proteins was strikingly like regular paneer, with a similar structure and texture to the real thing.
In fact, when they compared it directly to commercial fully dairy paneer, the researchers found that their hybrid creation scored well on almost all fronts. Texturally, the tests showed comparable springiness and elasticity, showing that it would maintain some of its bouncy texture when chewed. Then the researchers ran some cooking tests, and found that the hybrid cheese also stayed intact, and maintained its structure as well as dairy paneer, when it was baked and fried. What’s more, the hybrid cheese contained 17% more protein and fat, which could give it a nutritional advantage over regular paneer.
However, the hybrid cheese is still very much a work in progress, the researchers say. It is still somewhat less bouncy and more prone to breakage and crumbling than regular paneer. They note that this study is just a first step: the recipe can be endlessly tweaked by adding gelling agents, calcium, and enzymes that “should improve its cohesion and resilience to match traditional paneer more closely, even at higher pea protein content,” the study says.
Other research teams continue working to make fully plant-based cheeses more appetizing. For example, results from a recently-published literature review highlighted the positive role that several strains of lactic acid bacteria can play in fermenting plant-based milks, to create potentially tastier dairy-free cheese. For now, the results of the current study are limited to paneer—but considering the cheese’s global appeal, they could have a marked impact.
Paneer is the most commonly-consumed cheese in India, the world’s most populous nation. Elsewhere, the appetite for paneer is also growing. A hybrid paneer that’s less reliant on milk has the potential to relieve global livestock land pressures and emissions.
Hybrid cheese could help overcome a bigger hurdle than making plant-based cheese in the first place—which is to convince people that alternatives can actually taste good. As the researchers say, “Consumers who don’t like the taste experience won’t buy a product just because you tell them it’s sustainable.”
Ahrné, et. al. “Towards hybrid protein foods: Heat- and acid-induced hybrid gels formed from micellar casein and pea protein.” Food Research International. 2025.
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