Synergistic Gelation Effects in Surimi Mixtures Composed of Nemipterus virgatus and Hypophthalmichtys molitrix

Mixtures of marine fish surimi and freshwater fish surimi might have synergistic gelation effects under certain conditions. Here, various mixtures of Nemipterus virgatus surimi and Hypophthalmichtys molitrix surimi were analyzed, with respect to gelation characteristics, rheological properties, protein conformations, and microstructure. When the ratio of N. virgatus surimi to H. molitrix surimi was 3:1, gel strength was increased by 3.08% and 92.13%, while cooking loss was reduced by 7.64% and 33.94%, as compared to pure N. virgatus surimi and pure H. molitrix surimi, respectively. In the mixed surimi as compared to the pure surimi, brightness and whiteness were improved, while water holding capacity, the elasticity modulus (G'), and the β-sheet content were increased. Three-dimensional (3D) network structure of the mixed surimi gel was more compact and uniform than that of either pure surimi gel. In a word, the elasticity modulus and β-sheet content of mixtures surimi were significantly increased, and the 3D structure was more compact and uniform; all these led to synergistic gelation effects in surimi mixtures composed of N. virgatus and H. molitrix. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: With the accelerated pace of life, the demand quantity of surimi products has increased year by year, but the main raw materials of marine fish resources are increasingly scarce. On the contrary, freshwater fish that can be used for surimi processing resources are very rich, and the price of them is low. Gel properties of freshwater fish surimi is worse than marine fish surimi, and how to improve it is one of the bottlenecks in the development of freshwater fish surimi. We and others have been found that the blended surimi from freshwater fish with marine fish could produce gel synergies under the proper conditions. So, Nemipterus virgatus (marine fish) surimi and Hypophthalmichtys molitrix (freshwater fish) surimi were used as raw materials, and the synergistic effects of the mixed surimi were explored.