Study on the effect and mechanism of chicken breast on the gel properties of silver carp (Hypophthalmichtys molitrix) surimi

Abstract BACKGROUND Adding appropriate exogenous substances is an effective means to improve the quality of freshwater fish surimi. The present study investigated the effects of chicken breast on the gel properties of mixed minced meat products. RESULTS With the increase in the proportion of chicken breast, the breaking force of mixed gels gradually increased. When the addition ratio was 30:70, the gel strength of mixed gels had the highest strength of 759.00 g cm −1 and also the highest water holding capacity of 87.36%. Compared with surimi gels (0:100), the hardness, adhesiveness and chewiness of mixed gels were significantly improved. The increase in the proportion of chicken breast increased the thermal stability of the mixed sol and improved the rheological properties of the mixed sol. When the proportion was 40:60, the area of immobile water ( A 22 ) in the mixed gel increased significantly, and the highest A 22 was 3463.24. The hydrophobic interactions and disulfide bonds in the mixed gel were significantly increased as a result of the addition of chicken breast. The results of microstructure, electrophoresis and Raman spectroscopy indicated that the addition of chicken breast promoted the cross‐linking of the proteins in mixed gels, which facilitated the transformation of the protein secondary structure from α ‐helical to β ‐folded structure, thus forming a more uniform and orderly network structure. CONCLUSION These results suggest that improving the gel properties of silver carp surimi by use of chicken breast has practical implications for the development of new blended products for surimi processing. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.