Overview of recombinant meat products
The recombinant bonding technology of meat generally includes 2 kinds, the more common is the thermal coagulation technology, that is, the addition of substances containing salts to precipitate the myofibrinoin in the muscle, and then form a protein gel under high temperature conditions by heating to achieve the purpose of recombination; the other is the condensation technology, which refers to the purpose of recombination of minced meat through enzymes, binders and mechanical external forces at low temperatures, and its advantage is that the addition of salt-containing substances can be reduced.
In the research progress of condensation, the earliest used binder is transglutaminase (transglutaminase, tgase or tgase) produced by microorganisms, which acts as a binder to achieve the purpose of recombining minced meat by producing enzyme protein crosslinking.
In the foreign meat market, especially in developed countries, recombinant meat products account for a considerable proportion. According to the processing method and the degree of segmentation, recombinant meat can generally be divided into three categories: the forming processing of large muscles, the forming processing of small muscles, and the forming processing of flake muscles. Product forms mainly include steak, ribs, barbecue and so on. According to the bonding mechanism of recombinant meat, the recombinant technology can be divided into chemical processing, enzymatic processing and physical processing.
However, due to the high cost of transglutaminase, recombinant meat can not be produced on a large scale, so the development of new binders has become a trend, this paper reviews the development of binders in recombinant meat at home and abroad in recent years, and looks forward to its development trend.
Research and application of binders in recombinant meat
The research and application of binders in recombinant meat in the early stage people think that the most important component of recombinant meat products processing is table salt, table salt has a certain antiseptic effect, and can be used to extract salt-soluble myofer fibrin in muscles, especially myosin and actin, which have a high viscosity and can improve the adhesion between meat pieces. However, because sodium salt is directly related to some diseases such as high blood pressure, consumers are more inclined to low-salt products.
The development of new binders will become a trend. TG enzymes are the earliest used binders because of their ability to catalyze the covalent crosslinking of protein molecules and are used in recombinant technology. At present, tg powder produced by Japan's Ajinomoto Company and Chiba Milling Company has been widely used in simulated foods for livestock meat and fish meat. However, China only slightly adjusted the scope of application of TG enzyme to soybean products in 2011.
Sodium alginate and calcium chloride are also more commonly used binders in recombinant meat technology, as sodium alginate can form a gel with divalent metal ions and bind crushed meat. Gluconolactone and carrageenan compound binder appeared late, and can be used as a substitute for table salt, although the color quality of meat is not very good, a bit like the color of meat after cooking, but the adhesion ability of recombinant meat products has been significantly enhanced, and it can also meet the needs of consumers well.