Abstract: Emulsion gels, a complex colloid system in which the emulsion and the gel coexist with a unique three-dimensional network structure, are widely used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries. As a high-molecular-mass protein, soybean protein has good functional and physicochemical properties. Soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels can be prepared by various methods such as heat induction, salt induction, phosphorylation modification and enzyme induction, forming a core-shell structure with soybean protein-stabilized oil droplets, which have excellent gel-forming capacityand stability. Soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels have been widely studied and applied as fat substitutes to reduce the content of animal protein and fat in the food system and as novel materials for three-dimensional printing. To better understand the research progress in soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels, the classification of and the preparation methods for soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels are reviewed. The structure and formation mechanism of emulsion gels stabilized by soybean protein alone or combined with polysaccharide are analyzed and summarized. The functional properties such as gelation, rheological properties and stability of soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels are elucidated. Finally, the applications of soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gels are summarized to provide a theoretical basis for the processing and utilization of soybean protein-stabilized emulsion gel products.

Key words: emulsion gels; structure; functional characteristics; mechanism of action