Fuente: PubMed "agrofood sustainability" Front Nutr. 2026 Jun 18;13:1873081. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2026.1873081. eCollection 2026.ABSTRACTINTRODUCTION: The growing demand for sustainable and locally sourced food products has stimulated interest in alternative fermented condiments that can replace conventional soy sauce while maintaining comparable sensory and functional properties.METHODS: In this study, commercial soy sauces and artisanal legume-based fermented sauces produced using traditional shoyu techniques were comparatively evaluated through an integrated analytical approach. Six samples, including three commercial soy sauces and three non-pasteurized sauces derived from peas, chickpeas, and lentils, were characterized in terms of physicochemical properties, volatile organic compounds, sensory profiles, consumer preference, and non-destructive measurements (electronic nose and near-infrared spectroscopy).RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Results demonstrated that raw material significantly influences both chemical composition and sensory perception. A total of 70 volatile compounds were identified. While soy-based sauces were characterized by a more defined volatile profile dominated by Maillard-derived compounds and volatile phenols, legume-based sauces exhibited a more complex volatile profile, including sulfur-containing metabolites and lipid oxidation products such as 1-octen-3-ol. This higher chemical diversity was reflected in increased sensory complexity, with descriptors such as dried mushroom, bacon, chocolate, clove, and Parmesan cheese showing the greatest discriminative power (p < 0.001). Consumer testing revealed significantly higher liking scores for legume-based sauces than for commercial soy sauces (p < 0.05), with chickpea-based sauce showing the highest acceptance. Non-destructive techniques effectively discriminated samples according to matrix composition. Electronic nose analysis explained 77.1% of the total variance in the first two principal components (PC1 = 59.3%, PC2 = 17.8%), whereas NIR spectroscopy explained 99.5% of total variance (PC1 = 87.2%, PC2 = 12.3%), clearly separating soy-based and legume-based products. The study demonstrates that locally sourced, soy-free fermented sauces obtained from legumes can achieve high chemical and sensory complexity, with strong consumer acceptance. These findings support the potential of such products as sustainable alternatives to conventional soy sauce within circular and low-impact food systems.PMID:42395623 | PMC:PMC13322842 | DOI:10.3389/fnut.2026.1873081