Shelf-stable fermented plant-based food product packaged in a flexible container and process for producing such product

Process for preparing a packaged food product consisting of a shelf-stable plant-based fermented dairy analogue contained in a flexible container, wherein said process comprises the steps of:

• (a) providing a plant-based food composition comprising plant protein-containing ingredient, cereal flour and hydrophilic liquid, wherein the plant-based food composition comprises 2.0 to 5.5 wt % plant proteins, wherein the plant protein-containing ingredient is different from the cereal flour,
• (b) heating the plant-based food composition at 55°° C. to 80° C. for 5 to 15 minutes to obtain a gelatinized plant-based food composition,
• (c) homogenizing the gelatinized plant-based food composition at a pressure above 50 bar,
• (d) heat treating the gelatinized plant-based food composition at a temperature from 80°° C. to 100° C. for 30 seconds to 10 minutes,
• (e) inoculating the heat-treated and homogenized plant-based food composition with at least one starter culture to obtain an inoculated plant-based food composition,
• (f) fermenting the inoculated plant-based food composition until reaching a pH of 3.0 to 5.0, to obtain a plant-based fermented dairy analogue,
• (g) heat-treating the plant-based fermented dairy analogue at a temperature from 75° C. to 125° C. for 3 seconds to 15 minutes to obtain a shelf-stable fermented dairy analogue,
• (h) hot filling the shelf-stable fermented dairy analogue into a flexible container at a temperature of 80°° C. to 100°° C. to obtain a packaged food product.