1, the role of processing technology to reduce sodium meat products
Meat products to reduce salt will have a significant impact on the shelf life of the product, the actual production of low-temperature, dry processing methods to ensure product quality, but the low-temperature method of product storage, transportation put forward higher requirements, and increase the cost of investment; drying method in reducing the water activity of the product when the impact of the output rate and quality structure. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new processing technology to ensure the quality of reduced sodium meat products.
1.1 Effect of high-pressure treatment High-pressure belongs to the cold sterilization processing method, which is a method of low-sodium meat products processing, and it has little effect on the sensory, texture and nutrients of the meat products, which is beneficial to the shelf life of the products. High pressure enhances the water holding capacity of low-salt sliced bacon, slows down the loss of water during storage, and solves the problem of low moisture content and hard texture. However, too high a pressure can damage the cell structure and lead to a decrease in water retention.
For chicken processing, potassium salts replacing 25% (mass fraction) NaCl combined with HPP promoted gelatinization of raw chicken sausages, which helped to improve hardness and reduce cooking loss of cooked chicken sausages, and maintained texture and color stability during 40 d of cold storage. When HPP was applied to low-salt beef sausages, it was found that the 1.4% (mass fraction) low-salt group combined with HPP treatment was able to achieve the same microbial stability as the conventional high-salt group (2.8% (mass fraction)), and the 200 MPa treatment was similar to that of the high-salt group in terms of textural and sensory properties, but the sensory and textural characteristics of the sausages were reduced beyond the 300 MPa treatment. This indicates that HPP has different effects on different meat products, and can improve the flavor of low-sodium raw/cooked meat products, promote the distribution of sodium in meat products, reduce the number of microorganisms in the products, and improve the acceptance of consumers.
1.2 Role of ultrasonic treatment Ultrasonic technology can kill some of the microorganisms in meat products, accelerate their marinating process, reduce marinating time, and promote the extraction of muscle fiber proteins, etc. US and other additives, alkaline electrolytic water, etc., in the reduction of sodium content at the same time, to maintain or enhance the organoleptic and textural characteristics of the meat products, which meets the consumer's demand for healthy food.
1.3 Role of microwave treatment Microwave heating is a thermal processing technology that is widely used in the food industry for ripening and sterilization because of its fast heating rate, convenience and energy saving. Microwave heating induces changes in muscle proteins and may alter the interaction between proteins and Na+. The mechanism of microwave salting may be that microwave heating retains more flavor substances in food products, and the intensity of flavor substances affects the perception of salinity as well as the acceptability of sensory ratings. Weak protein denaturation of meat products by microwave heating reduces salt loss and has the potential to improve the perception of saltiness of meat in the food industry.
1.4 Effect of magnetic field treatment Magnetic field action facilitates protein diffusion and adsorption at the oil-water interface by altering the MP conformation, exposing hydrophobic groups, and inducing competitive binding reaction sites for Ca2+ and Na+, thus altering the structure of the minced meat gel and the utilization of sodium salt. In addition, pulse electric field, radiofrequency heating technology and γ-ray processing technology is conducive to maintaining product quality and promoting the dispersion of salt in meat products, and can also be used for salt reduction processing and marination of meat products.
2, the development of natural low-sodium alternatives
The use of potassium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, magnesium sulfate, potassium lactate, calcium lactate, potassium dihydrogen phosphate, etc. for low-sodium meat products more research, has been applied in the actual production.
Research on other low-sodium alternatives that naturally have a salty flavor or improve the texture of meat products is also increasing.
2.1 Odor-induced salty taste enhancement Volatile substances with salty aroma characteristics can significantly enhance the intensity of salty taste perception of NaCl solution, this phenomenon is odor-induced salty taste enhancement. This phenomenon is odor-induced salty taste enhancement, which mainly uses the synergistic effect of smell on taste to compensate for the decrease in salty taste caused by the decrease in the amount of NaCl added. Odor-induced salty taste enhancement is a promising low-sodium solution using compounds with salty aroma to enhance salty taste perception through olfactory compensation.
2.2 Development of alternative salty substances
2.2.1 Development of biological salt Grass green salt horn grass is a saline plant with a mineral content of about 3.3% (mass fraction), which is an excellent material for the preparation of plant salt. Freeze-dried grass green salthorn extract contains minerals (Na, K and Mg, etc.), free amino acids (lysine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid and arginine, etc.) which are the material basis for its salty flavor, indicating the potential of grass green salthorn as a natural sodium-reducing substitute for traditional dry-cured meat products processing.
2.2.2 Development of salty peptides Salty peptides are a class of peptides with salty taste or enhanced salty taste. The taste of salty peptides is closely related to the type, nature, sequence and spatial structure of amino acids and peptides. Salty peptides extracted and prepared from natural plants and animals have great potential as substitutes for NaCl. Savory peptides can be prepared from a variety of sources, such as fermentation or enzymatic degradation of plant and animal proteins, or saccharification of peptides through the Merad reaction to promote the formation of savory peptides. In recent years, salty peptides have been gradually used in meat processing to reduce the sodium content in meat products while maintaining flavor and texture. 7% (mass fraction) salty peptides with 30% (mass fraction) CaCl2 and KCl are used in salted meat and sausage instead of 37% (mass fraction) NaCl, which is similar to the product quality and flavor of 100% (mass fraction) table salt, and can also inhibit the growth of bacteria. Salty peptide has the characteristics of natural, safe and easy to absorb, which is a new type of salt substitution substance. However, due to its high production cost, less industrialized production applications are currently available. Exploring the low-cost and high-efficiency production technology of salty peptide is the future research direction.
2.2.3 Development of Alkaline Amino Acids Alkaline amino acids refer to amino acids with two amino groups and one carboxyl group, which have the effect of enhancing salty flavor. The effects of alkaline amino acids (lysine, arginine, histidine, etc.) on MP processing properties (physicochemical properties, gel properties and emulsification properties, etc.) and meat product quality (proteolysis, lipolysis, protein oxidation, lipid oxidation, organoleptic and textural properties, etc.) and their intrinsic mechanisms have shown that alkaline amino acids can reduce the amount of salt used in meat and fish products, increase the solubility of myoglobulin, change the gel properties of myosin, enhance the stability of low-salt sausage emulsion, and inhibit the oxidation of fat and protein.
2.2.4 Development of yeast extract Yeast extract is a product obtained by enzymolysis of food-grade yeast as the main raw material, which mainly consists of amino acids, polypeptides and 5′-inosinic acid, 5′-guanosinic acid and so on. Yeast extract can improve the fresh and salty taste of meat products, enrich and mellow the flavor of food, replace part of the salt, and add in moderation to mask the odor, no bad smell. Yeast extract contains 2 peptides-10 peptides, which can be used in poultry and pork to reduce the use of salt.
2.3 Development of other natural substitutes Bone meal, dietary fiber, soybean isolate protein and enzymes and other natural substances used in the study of meat products.
3、Compound processing and structural changes in meat products to reduce sodium effect
The development of low-sodium meat products can be facilitated by the multiple effects of processing technology and different substitutes. Composite processing for the MP gel properties and the texture of meat products play a role, which can supplement the low salt deficiency, the MP conformational effects of meat products, meat products, quality stabilization. The use of processing technology, composite processing to reduce salt at the same time, in order to maintain the texture and flavor of meat products are not significantly affected by the conditions, can reduce the use of phosphate, to promote the development of low-sodium, low-phosphorus meat products.
4、 Outlook
Reduction of sodium content in meat products is a joint/synergistic effect of multiple technologies and additive improvements, which also need to be combined with control of microbial contamination and maintenance of hygienic control of the processing. In addition to the use of salt in meat processing, the commonly used water-holding agent phosphate also contains sodium ions, so by changing the type of phosphate or other water-holding substances, the sodium content in meat products can also be further reduced. The development of low-sodium meat products is also closely related to food perception technology. Consumer acceptance of low-sodium food products also requires continuous improvement and enhancement in terms of product promotion, health awareness, and taste adaptation. The development of low-sodium meat products requires the participation of producers, consumers, media publicity and other parties to jointly promote the promotion and acceptance of low-sodium meat products.
Helper Machinery Group Co., Ltd.
