## 4 Discussion
### Sensorial and VOC Analysis  
The resulting acidification of food by LAB fermentation improved the sensory profile, nutritional properties, texture and microbial safety of PB food, avoiding the addition of chemical preservatives (clean label) while preserving their original natural status [8,10]. In our study, LAB fermentation considerably lowered the beany and grass aromas, even though it did not decrease the level of unpleasant VOCs. This could be due to LAB fermentation generating new compounds that masked, in particular, the beany and grass aromas, such as the sour taste, which is in accordance with [8,58,65]. The variation in the organoleptic properties was considerable for the three LAB-fermented beverages investigated. Even though STLP fermentation was responsible for the highest acidity content, the panelists rated the sourness of STLL and STLP as equal and the acidity aroma to be the highest in STLL. Regarding the texture attributes, and in accordance with the back extrusion texture results, STLP fermentation increased the lightness of color and the creaminess of texture more. Both ST as a monoculture and in a co-culture with LP increased the stickiness more and decreased the solubility of the final product more. Usually, LAB fermentation is used as a strategy to mask or eliminate the undesired flavor of legume-derived ingredients and food products [8]. Nevertheless, few examples of unpleasant flavor formation after LAB fermentation were highlighted [65]. Undoubtedly, the contribution of LAB to the volatile profile was found by increasing the amount of the already existing compounds and generating new ones. Since samples were subject to the same thermal treatment, the absence of 2-heptanone in the control and its presence in fermented samples could be attributed to the fermentation process by the specific strains chosen. Pulses and Apulian black chickpeas, in particular [16], are rich in unsaturated fatty acids (e.g., linoleic and linolenic acid), as well as lipid-modifying enzymes, and thus, many volatile short-chain aldehydes, ketones, hydrocarbons and alcohols responsible for the off-flavor could be produced [66; 67; 68; 69]. Aldehydes are commonly related to the legumes' off-flavor and are produced by fatty acid oxidation [68]. According to the literature, hexanal is typically found in peas conferring fatty, green and grassy odors, and the higher its quantity, the less the acceptability of the product by consumers [70]. In contrast with [PERSON] et al. [71], in our study, neither Streptococcus alone nor in a co-culture with Lactobacillus plantarum or Lactococcus lactis eliminated the hexanal and 2-pentylfuran, which on the contrary, they increased in the LAB-fermented samples, and mostly in ST. Despite 2-pentylfuran contributing to the off-flavor in soy products, it could also suppress the perception of other off-flavor molecules, such as dimethyltrisulfide, usually ascribed to the odor of feces, meat broth and sewers, in peas [68; 72]. Since 2-pentylfuran was absent in STLL and found in the control, its formation is not strictly attributed to LAB fermentation but by other routes, such as those reported by [PERSON] et al. [73]. Acids, such as octanoic and decanoic acids, could arise from the auto-oxidation of linoleic acid and were attributed to a strong unpleasant odor in chickpeas, such as the sweaty flavor of octanoic acid [68; 72]. In light of all this, it is worth saying that the increase or decrease trends for a single active aroma compound responsible for the off-flavors are important. However, the odor perception of foods is not only caused by a single VOC; in fact, it is difficult to link sensory perception to a single volatile in a mixture of different compounds [74]. Many studies focused on the odor perception given by a combination of different molecules [75].