Effect of non-meat proteins on hydration and textural properties of pork meat gels enhanced with microbial transglutaminase

The combined effect of incorporation of four non-muscle proteins, NMP (blood plasma, BP; sodium caseinate, SC; soy protein isolate, SPI; gelatin, G) at 2 g/100 g levels on hydration and textural characteristics of pork gels processed without or with 0.6 g/100 g microbial transglutaminase preparation (MTG) was investigated. Addition of SC and BP most favourably affected hydration properties and thermal stability, yielding lower cooking loss and expressible moisture for pork gels. Interactions between NMP and MTG were observed. Improvement of gel strength by addition of transglutaminase was observed for treatments containing SC and BP but not G nor soy isolate. Of the four proteins tested SC was found to be a superior substrate for MTG in enhancing textural properties of a gelled meat system. None of the tested ingredients was able to yield gel cohesiveness equivalent to the control containing 8% muscle proteins. Results of this study indicate a potential for using MTG to improve or modify the functional and textural properties of investigated food proteins (SC and BP in particular) in comminuted meat products.