Effects of two types of soy protein isolates, native and preheated whey protein isolates on emulsified meat batters prepared at different protein levels

The effects of substituting 1.5% of the meat proteins with low gelling soy protein isolate (LGS), high gelling soy protein isolate (HGS), native whey protein isolate (NWP), and preheated whey protein isolate (PWP) were compared at varying levels of proteins (12, 13 and 14%), with all meat control batters prepared with canola oil. Cooking losses were lower for all the non-meat protein treatments compared to the all meat controls. When raising the protein level from 12 to 14%, cooking losses increased in all treatments except for the NWP treatments. Using LGS increased emulsification and resulted in a more stable meat batters at the 13 and 14% protein treatments. Textural profile analysis results showed that elevating protein level increased hardness and cohesiveness. The highest hardness values were obtained for the PWP treatments and the lowest for the HGS, indicating a strong non-meat protein effect on texture modification. Non-meat protein addition resulted in lighter and less red products (i.e., lower red meat content) compared to the all meat controls; color affected by non-meat protein type. Light microscopy revealed that non-meat proteins decreased the frequency of fat globules' agglomeration and protein aggregation. The whey protein preparations and HGS formed distinct “islands” within the meat batters' matrices, which appeared to interact with the meat protein matrix.