Evaluation of Emulsion Gel Stabilized by Konjac Glucomannan as a Pork Fat Substitute: Effect on Microstructure, Water Distribution, and Oxidative Stability of Meat Patties

This study aims to evaluate the use of the emulsion gel stabilized by konjac glucomannan (KGM) as a substitute for pork fat and investigates its effects on the quality attributes of meat patties. The substitution resulted in enhanced visual presentation and a more intricate protein network structure, while reducing the cooking loss of the meat patties. Notably, the textural properties of the patties remained unaffected with fat substitution levels ranging from 0% to 80%. The cooking loss of fat-substituted patties showed a reduction of up to 44% compared with the control group. Besides, the water mobility was also impeded by the emulsion gel addition, which further influenced the meat quality, such as storage stability. The storage test showed that the peroxide value and malondialdehyde value of the meat patties with emulsion gel were lower than the control group, and decreased with the increased substitution ratio, indicating that the emulsion gel slowed down the lipid oxidation rate of meat patties. This work confirmed the potential and positive impact of substituting animal fat with KGM-stabilized emulsion gel.