Search Results (80)

To improve the gel quality of low-salt shrimp surimi gel (SSG) from Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), L-arginine (L-Arg), L-lysine (L-Lys), and L-proline (L-Pro) were used as partial substitutes for NaCl. The effect of the three amino acids on gel properties, protein conformation, microstructure, and in vitro digestion of low-salt SSG were systematically analyzed. Macro-/microstructural analyses revealed that L-Arg, L-Lys, and L-Pro promoted denser three-dimensional networks in low-salt SSG with smaller pore sizes. Compared with the low-salt control (LC) group, the addition of L-Arg, L-Lys, and L-Pro significantly increased the gel strength of low-salt SSG. Cooking loss was significantly decreased from 10.80% (LC group) to 1.89–4.31%. Protein solubility and turbidity results demonstrated that all amino acids markedly enhanced protein solubilization and inhibited protein aggregation. L-Arg and L-Lys mainly promoted hydrogen and disulfide bonds, but reduced hydrophobic interactions and ionic bonds. L-Arg impaired digestibility only in the gastric phase, whereas L-Lys suppressed digestibility across both gastric and intestinal phases. Through molecular docking technology, ASN-238 and LYS-187 of myosin (the dominant gel-forming protein) are the key shared binding residues with three amino acids. These findings suggest that amino acids provide a feasible approach to specifically modulate the gel characteristics of low-salt surimi products. Full article

This study evaluated the responses of five sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) hybrids (Surimi CL, Integral CL, Alexa SU, Neta SU, and Davero SU) to three planting densities (84,034, 68,027, and 57,143 plants/ha) in terms of agronomic performance and photosynthetic efficiency. Higher plant density reduced leaf area and seed weight but enhanced uniformity of head formation. Among the tested hybrids, Integral CL and Surimi CL demonstrated superior performance under high density, maintaining higher chlorophyll content, photosynthetic activity, and yield stability. In contrast, Davero SU performed best under low density, characterized by greater leaf expansion, seed filling, and overall productivity. These findings highlight the potential of integrating physiological and agronomic traits to inform hybrid-specific planting density optimization under diverse environmental conditions. Full article

This study investigated the effects of direct vat set commercial yoghurt starter (B) and yeast starter (Y) on the quality of fermented large yellow croaker surimi balls, with natural fermentation (CTR) as a control. Surimi products were inoculated and fermented at 25 °C for 4 h, then analyzed for physicochemical, sensory, and oxidative properties. Yoghurt starter significantly inhibited protein oxidation, as indicated by the highest sulfhydryl content (9.10 nmol/mg protein, p < 0.05), improved textural properties (hardness was 28% higher than CTR, p < 0.05), and promoted a balanced flavor profile, accompanied by the highest equivalent umami concentration (1.66%, p < 0.05). However, B also caused the greatest MDA accumulation (1.49 mg/kg, p < 0.05), reflecting enhanced lipid oxidation. By comparison, Y enhanced umami primarily through significant enrichment of aspartic acid (53.88 mg/100 g, p < 0.05) and accelerated nucleotide degradation, resulting in the highest AMP and hypoxanthine levels (p < 0.05). These advantages were offset by severe protein carbonylation (54.32 nmol/mg protein, p < 0.05) and evident color deterioration. Sensory analysis revealed no significant difference between B and CTR (p > 0.05), whereas Y received significantly lower acceptance scores (p < 0.05) due to impaired color and taste. These findings suggest that B is a promising starter for improving texture and flavor in fermented surimi balls, while Y, despite enhancing umami and controlling lipid oxidation, negatively affects color, texture, and protein stability. Full article

The giant squid, despite its abundance as a resource, is underutilized for surimi production due to its distinctive odor and poor gel-forming ability. While soaking (e.g., in sodium citrate) can alleviate the odor, its impact on the gel properties remains unclear. This study employed a comparative approach using pork, a benchmark for high-quality gels, to critically evaluate the gel properties of deodorized giant squid. The rheological, textural, and microstructural properties, as well as the water-holding capacity and water distribution, of squid (after sodium citrate soaking) and pork gels were compared. The results demonstrated that the squid gels exhibited a significantly lower storage modulus and higher tan δ value than pork gels, indicating inferior rheological properties. After cooking, the squid gel exhibited a bent shape and markedly lower hardness (approximately 259.78 g) and chewiness (approximately 226.09 g) compared to the pork gels (approximately 3305.92 g and 2781.27 g, respectively). Microstructurally, the squid gels presented a coarse, porous, and discontinuous network with larger pores, contrasting sharply with the fine, dense, and uniform matrix of the pork gels. Correspondingly, the squid gels had inferior water-holding capacity and a higher proportion of free water. This comparison demonstrates that the gel from sodium citrate-soaked giant squid is weak. More importantly, it provides mechanistic insights by highlighting the specific structural and hydration deficiencies responsible for its poor performance. The findings underscore that targeted strategies to modify the protein network are necessary for the effective utilization of giant squid in surimi production. Full article

In this study, whey protein isolate–soybean lecithin-encapsulated vitamin A emulsion (V_A-WSE) with different oil-to-water ratios was prepared and characterized. The impact of V_A-WSE on the physicochemical characteristics of Nemipterus virgatus surimi at varying concentrations was determined. The V_A-WSE emulsion exhibited the best stability when the oil-to-water (O:W) ratio was 1:1 (w/w). Composite gels prepared by mixing V_A-WSE (O:W = 1:1, w/w) with surimi at different ratios showed significantly improved gel properties. In particular, the hardness, chewiness, gel strength, and water-holding capacity of the composite gel with a V_A-WSE concentration of 8% (w/w) reached the highest values of 2629.00 g, 2051.27 g, 292.16 g·cm, and 87.10%, respectively. Similarly, the observed voids in the microstructural images gradually decreased with rising V_A-WSE concentration and were the smallest in the 8% sample group. Surimi gels showed remarkably enhanced hydrogen bonds in the V_A-WSE concentration range of 0–8%, increasing from 0.001 to 0.025 mg/mL (p < 0.05). Furthermore, it was observed that the energy storage modulus (G′) was larger than the loss modulus (G″), suggesting the dominant elastic characteristics of the composite gels. The solubility and total sulfhydryl group contents significantly increased from 30.33 to 88.29% and from 4.90 to 28.19 nmol/mg, respectively. In summary, V_A-WSE can promote the unfolding of the myofibrillar protein (MP) structure and improve the gel properties of surimi gels. These results support the development of functional surimi products. Full article

The invasive Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) in North America represents a promising resource for surimi production; however, its gel formability deteriorates significantly during frozen storage. This study investigated the deterioration of gel properties in Silver Carp surimi over six months of frozen storage, and showed that short-term frozen storage (<2 months) was beneficial for surimi gel-forming ability, while extended frozen storage (>2 months) tended to have detrimental effects. The adverse effect of long-term frozen storage could be mitigated via using food additives (e.g., manufactured microfiber, transglutaminase, and chicken skin collagen), among which transglutaminase was the most effective. Transglutaminase at a relatively low level (0.1 wt%) could effectively negate frozen storage’s effects, and produced surimi gel with quality attributes (e.g., gel strength, hardness, and chewiness) at levels comparable to those from fresh fish samples. To assess the effects of the addition of various food additives for quality improvement, a synthetic data-driven machine learning (SDDML) approach was developed. After testing multiple algorithms, the random forest model was shown to yield synthetic data points that represented experimental data characteristics the best (R² values of 0.871–0.889). It also produced improved predictions for gel quality attributes from control variables (i.e., additive levels) compared to using experimental data alone, showing the potential to overcome data scarcity issues when only limited experimental data are available for ML models. A synthetic dataset of 240 data points was shown to supplement the experimental dataset (60 points) well for assessment of the Frozen Silver Carp (FSC) surimi gel quality attributes. The SDDML method could be used to find optimal recipes for generating additive profiles to counteract the adverse effects of frozen storage and to improve surimi gel quality to upgrade underutilized invasive species to value-added food products. Full article

Snack foods (e.g., extruded flour-based products) are widely favored by consumers because of their convenience, affordability, and time-saving attributes. However, with the growing demand for high-quality snacks, several challenges have emerged that hinder industry development, such as relatively underdeveloped industrial standards, limited raw material diversity (primarily starch and soy protein), and, consequently, insufficient nutritional value. In this study, a novel type of puffed snack was developed using Alaskan pollock surimi and wheat flour using extrusion puffing technology. The effects of varying ratios of surimi to wheat flour (0:10, 1:9, 2:8, 3:7, and 4:6, which served as SFBC, SFB1, SFB2, SFB3, and SFB4, respectively), on the physicochemical properties, apparent morphology, microstructure, thermal stability, and protein structure of spicy strips were systematically investigated, and the interaction between extruded protein and flour mixtures was analyzed. The results indicated that increasing the proportion of surimi led to decreases in hardness, elasticity, and chewiness, whereas the moisture content and water solubility index increased. The maximum expansion rate (202.2%) was observed in the SFB1 sample. Morphological and microstructural observations further revealed that a higher surimi content resulted in a denser internal structure and a reduced degree of puffing. The protein distribution was relatively uniform, with large pores. Moreover, increased surimi content increased the proportion of immobilized water and improved the thermal stability. These findings provide valuable insights into starch–protein-complex-based extrusion puffing technologies and contribute to the development of innovative surimi-based puffed food products. Full article

Freshwater surimi typically exhibits poor gel-forming capability and is prone to gel deterioration, limiting its applications in food products. This study successfully prepared silver carp surimi gels with improved gel strength and water-holding capacity (WHC) using carboxymethyl konjac glucomannan (CKGM) as a functional modifier. Furthermore, the regulatory mechanism of CKGM with different degrees of substitution (DS) on the gel properties of silver carp surimi was systematically investigated. Results demonstrated that DS significantly influenced gel strength, WHC, and microstructure. CKGM (DS = 0.21%) substantially enhanced the gel strength and WHC through strengthened hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen-bond networks. However, CKGM with a higher DS (0.41%) induced a steric hindrance effect, decreasing elastic modulus and WHC and resulting in a more porous gel network. Raman spectroscopy analysis revealed that CKGM facilitated the conformational transition of myofibrillar proteins from α-helix to β-sheet, thereby improving the density of the gel network. The study provides theoretical foundations and technical guidance for the quality improvement of surimi products. Full article

This study investigated the gel performance of Spanish mackerel surimi gels (SMSGs) modified by three anionic polysaccharides: κ-carrageenan (KC), ι-carrageenan (IC), and gellan gum (GG). By incorporating polysaccharides, SMSGs showed a 24.9–103.4% improvement in gel and textural properties, in which KC and IC had more improvement effects than GG. Moreover, polysaccharides led to a 10.7–13.1% increment in WHC, a shortened water migration from 61.34 to 52.43–55.93 ms in T₂₂, and enhanced thermal stability of SMSGs. The content of α-helix in SMSGs reduced markedly accompanied by a concurrent enhancement of β-sheet and β-turn by adding polysaccharides, where β-sheet and β-turn are positively correlated with hardness being favorable for gelling. The microstructure of SMSGs/polysaccharides showed a homogeneous network mainly due to hydrophobic interactions and disulfide bonds in SMSG-based gels. This study will demonstrate the effectiveness of KC, IC, and GG in improving the texture and functionality as well as expanding the application of surimi products. Full article

Surimi products are popular due to their high protein and low fat content. However, traditional processing methods rely on high concentrations of salt (2–3%) to maintain texture and stability, contributing to excessive sodium intake. As global health trends advance, developing green and low-salt technologies while maintaining product quality has become a research focus. Alkaline amino acids regulate protein conformation and intermolecular interactions through charge shielding, hydrogen bond topology, metal chelation, and hydration to compensate for the defects of solubility, gelation, and emulsification stability in the low-salt system. This article systematically reviews the mechanisms and applications of alkaline amino acids in reducing salt and maintaining quality in surimi. Research indicates that alkaline amino acids regulate the conformational changes of myofibrillar proteins through electrostatic shielding, hydrogen bond topology construction, and metal chelation, significantly improving gel strength, water retention, and emulsion stability in low-salt systems, with the results comparable to those in high-salt systems. Future research should optimize addition strategies using computational simulations technologies and establish a quality and safety evaluation system to promote industrial application. This review provides a theoretical basis for the green processing and functional enhancement of surimi products, which could have significant academic and industrial value. Full article

In this study, curdlan was investigated as a substitute for egg-white protein, and the effects of different concentrations (0.2%, 0.4%, 0.6%, 0.8%, and 1.0%) on lipid oxidation and the physicochemical properties of a novel low-salt surimi gel containing transglutaminase (TGase) and lysine were evaluated. The results indicated that adding appropriate curdlan concentrations (0.2%–0.4%, especially 0.4%) significantly inhibited lipid oxidation in the surimi gel, achieving the highest L* and whiteness values. The fracture strength, WHC, hardness, and chewiness of the gel increased by 23.87%, 6.70%, 32.80%, and 13.49%, respectively, compared to the control gel containing egg-white protein (p < 0.05). At 0.4% curdlan, the gel also enhanced the crosslinking within the surimi, improved its resistance to shear stress, significantly increased the G’ value, and shortened the T₂₁, T₂₂, and T₂₃ relaxation times, inhibiting the conversion of immobilized to free water in the gel and promoting a denser three-dimensional network structure. However, excessive curdlan amounts (0.6%–1.0%) led to a notable deterioration in the gel performance, causing a more irregular microstructure, the formation of larger cluster-like aggregates, and a negative effect on color. In conclusion, the combination of 0.4% curdlan with TGase and Lys is effective for preparing low-salt surimi products. Full article

Surimi gel quality is crucial for seafood product texture and water retention, yet conventional processing often fails to maximize the potential of underutilized species like Hypomesus olidus. This study investigated the effects of ultrasonic power (100, 200, 400, 800 W) and time (5, 10, 15, and 20 min) on gel properties to establish optimal processing conditions. Results demonstrated that moderate ultrasonic treatment (200 W, 10 min) significantly enhanced gel quality, yielding a dense, uniform network with improved (p < 0.05) functionality: thr water-holding capacity increased by 35.88%, gel strength increased by 143.75%, and textural properties (hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, gumminess, chewiness) improved by 124.02%, 25%, 8.69%, 201.29%, 188.08% while maintaining color stability (1.59% whiteness increase). These improvements were attributed to optimized protein cross-linking and network formation. These findings provide a scientific basis for the ultrasonic processing of Hypomesus solidus surimi, offering practical parameters for industrial applications to enhance product quality efficiently. Future research should explore scaling effects and synergistic processing methods. Full article

By analyzing interfacial dynamics between soybean oil concentrations and soy protein isolate (SPI), this study established their impact on Pickering emulsion stability. Two optimal soy protein-based emulsions (EM60 with 60% oil phase; EM75 with 75%) were identified as lipid substitutes in silver carp surimi products. The results revealed that uniformly spherical droplets in EM60 enhanced interparticle interactions at emulsion interfaces. Compared to EM75 addition, EM60’s finely dispersed droplets improved gel network compactness in the surimi matrix. This increased water-holding capacity (WHC) by 12.037% and gel strength by 2414.168 g·mm. EM75 addition significantly enhanced gel whiteness by 0.8483 units (p < 0.05). It also demonstrated superior physical filling effects in sol state, reinforcing structural rigidity. As unsaturated lipids, soybean oil substitution for saturated fats (e.g., lard) contributes positively to human health. Pre-emulsified soybean oil yielded stronger structural rigidity in surimi sol than direct oil addition. Post-gelation, significant increases were observed in gel strength (+828.100 g·mm), WHC (+6.093%), and elasticity (+0.07 units). Collectively, SPI-based emulsions offer novel insights for healthy lipid substitution in surimi gels. They elucidate differential impact mechanisms on texture, WHC, whiteness, and microstructure. This provides theoretical guidance for developing premium healthy surimi products. Full article

This study aims to assess the carbon footprint for the organization of frozen processed seafood manufacturing plants and propose sustainable strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Organizational activity data from 2024 were utilized to evaluate the carbon footprint and develop targeted mitigation measures. The findings indicate that Scope 1 emissions amounted to 12,685 tons of CO₂eq, Scope 2 emissions amounted to 15,403 tons of CO₂eq, and Scope 3 emissions amounted to 31,564 tons of CO₂eq. The total greenhouse gas emissions across all three scopes were 59,652 tons of CO₂eq, with additional greenhouse gas emissions recorded at 34,027 tons of CO₂eq. Mitigation measures were considered for activities contributing to at least 10% of emissions in each scope. In Scope 1, the use of R507 refrigerant in the production cooling system accounted for 9907 tons of CO₂eq, representing 78.10% of emissions. In Scope 2, electricity consumption contributed 15,403 tons of CO₂eq, constituting 100% of emissions. In Scope 3, the procurement of surimi (processed fish meat) was responsible for 20,844 tons of CO₂eq, accounting for 66.04% of emissions. Based on these findings, key mitigation strategies were proposed. For Scope 1, reducing emissions involves preventive maintenance of cooling systems to prevent leaks, replacing corroded pipelines, installing shut-off valves, and switching to alternative refrigerants with no greenhouse gas emissions. For Scope 2, energy-saving initiatives include promoting electricity conservation within the organization, maintaining equipment for optimal efficiency, installing energy-saving devices such as variable speed drives (VSD), upgrading to high-efficiency motors, and utilizing renewable energy sources like solar power. For Scope 3, emissions can be minimized by sourcing raw materials from suppliers with certified carbon footprint labels, prioritizing purchases from producers committed to carbon reduction, and selecting suppliers closer to manufacturing sites to reduce transportation-related emissions. Implementing these strategies will contribute to sustainable greenhouse gas emission reductions. Full article

This study investigated the synergistic effects of ultra-high pressure (UHP) and egg white protein (EWP) on the gel properties of sodium-reduced shrimp surimi. A Box–Behnken design targeting UHP pressure (200–400 MPa), duration (10–20 min), and EWP/myofibrillar protein (MP) ratio (1:9–5:5) was implemented to optimize gel strength, water holding capacity (WHC), and whiteness. Optimal conditions (290 MPa/15 min/EWP:MP = 3:5) yielded the following validated improvements, versus conventional processing: 282.27 g·mm gel strength, 14.90% WHC enhancement, and 16.63% reduced cooking loss. Texture profile analysis demonstrated superior elasticity in composite gels. Magnetic resonance imaging and scanning electron microscopy revealed a denser microstructure with enhanced water-binding capacity, corroborated by the rheological evidence of strengthened viscoelasticity. UHP promotes the partial expansion of MP, exposing hydrophobic groups and sulfhydryl groups, thereby enhancing intermolecular interactions. It also promotes the expansion of EWP, enabling the formation of disulfide bonds between molecules and facilitating the formation of network structures. These findings propose a scalable strategy for developing clean-label salt-reduced aquatic surimi products. Full article