Abstract:To develop a plant-based cheese with desirable texture and flavor, tiger nut was used as the main raw material and blended with soybean protein isolate and chickpea protein; transglutaminase (TGase) and xanthan gum were added to prepare Cyperus esculentus Cheese via fermentation by lactic acid bacteria. Taking the textural properties of commercial dairy cheese as a reference, on the basis of single-factor experiments, the comprehensive texture evaluation value (D^－value) was determined by the entropy weight method combined with the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution(TOPSIS), and the formula was optimized by response surface methodology. The texture, nutrition and flavor characteristics of the product were then evaluated. The results showed that the optimal formula consisted of 0.305% TGase, 1.570% soybean protein isolate and 0.106% xanthan gum; the D^－value of the verification test was 0.0809, which was close to the predicted value. The sensory score of the product was 89.1; the contents of protein, fat and sodium were 13.3, 10.9 and 0.025g/100g, respectively, with 11.3 g/100g carbohydrate and 822 kJ/100 g energy; the hardness, springiness, cohesiveness and chewiness were 879.63g, 0.54, 0.53 and 253.18g, respectively. Headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(HS-SPME-GC-MS) analysis showed that 48 volatile flavor compounds were identified, and key flavor compound analysis showed that hexanoic acid contributed most to the overall flavor. The product exhibited a cheese-like aroma, with both nutritional and sensory qualities.