Form and Function: Restructured Meats - Part Two
By: Ann Juttelstad, Associate Technical Editor
Click here to read Form and Function: Restructured Meats - Part One.
Keeping it Fresh
Structural Bond
Not Mom's Fish Sticks
Plain and Simple
Lactates in processed meat and seafood products control pH, helping extend shelf life. Most significantly, lactates, such as sodium lactate and potassium lactate, inhibit the development of Listeria monocytogenes and Clostridium botulinum. Ascorbic acid also inhibits the development of C. botulinum.
"Sodium lactate has a neutral pH," says P.K. Kuipers, marketing services manager, Purac Biochem, Gorinchem, the Netherlands, "and because of its good antimicrobial properties - due to reduction in water activity and special lactate-ion effect - sodium lactate extends the shelf life and improves the safety of meat products." Glucono delta lactone, used in cured meat and frankfurter applications, controls pH and also enhances the activity of benzoates, which are used as preservatives.
Potassium lactate also has been used to replace potassium chloride in reduced-salt formulations requiring extended shelf life. Historically, potassium chloride has been the substitute of choice for low-salt formulations, but its bitter flavor limited its use. Potassium lactate provides the same shelf stability in products, but is considered more palatable.
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When used in conjunction with alginates, calcium gluconate can restructure fresh-ground meat into a product mimicking whole-muscle meats. The calcium gluconate is added to the meat mixture in dry form in the same ratio as the alginate. The slurry is then mixed and cooked. The finished product, which is retort-stable, can be formed into chunks for stews or kebabs, sliced, or used as a whole piece. Calcium gluconate acts as an activator when used with alginates, forming a "calcium bridge" between protein structures, says Bob Jungk, director of marketing, PMP Fermentation Products Inc., Itasca, IL.
Forming chemical bonds between proteins is the key to the functioning of a newly available enzyme from Ajinomoto, says Robert Bursey, director, regulatory affairs, Ajinomoto U.S.A., Inc., Washington, D.C. Transglutaminase (TG) recently has been approved for use in nonstandardized meat products, says Bursey, and he expects to see the ingredient approved for use in meat products with standards of identity soon. Already GRAS for seafood, dairy products and meat analogs, TG plays a revolutionary role in restructured meats and seafoods.
"Most enzymes used in food processing function by cleaving - hydrolyzing, e.g. proteases - or modifying - isomerizing, e.g. isomerases - specific molecules found in the foods," Bursey says. Mechanically processed restructured meat products rely on the massaging of the meat as well as ingredient interactions to bring the proteins to the surface so they can bond. TG cross-links proteins in a covalent bond between two peptides. "This cross-linking makes it possible to create large polymeric protein molecules from small protein substrates," Bursey says. "This is the way it's done in nature."
TG is distributed widely in nature, but its separation and purification haven't been commercially viable until recently. It is now produced through the fermentation of the microorganism Streptoverticillum mobaraense. The process, approved in Japan for nine years, possesses decided advantages for the food-processing industry.
For example, small bay scallops, which offer marginal consumer appeal, can be bound together to form a "scallop medallion," which packs considerably more sales potential. Canned sausages of all types now can be formulated with TG, and exit the retorting process with a firm texture and pleasant "bite." It can provide hot dogs and low-fat processed meats with a definite textural advantage. In addition, TG also helps foods lose less water on cooking, and increases yield. The product imparts no flavor impact to the products in which it is used, making it ideal for mild seafood and poultry applications. TG is labeled as "enzyme" on the label statement, a designation with little adverse consumer reaction.
Bursey views TG as a boon to the foodservice industry, where a great demand exists for large, consistent cuts of meat. Bursey expects it to be used, for example, to bind two pieces of tenderloin together to form one long, perfect roast with little waste and consistent cooking qualities or to form perfect boneless hams or boneless salmon steaks that can fit exactly on a bun. Institutional applications are intriguing, says Bursey, as operators seek nutritious, consistent entrees for hospitals, nursing homes and other care facilities.
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Sometimes, new products come about not by way of new ingredients, but because of the linking of ingredients with machinery. National Fish & Seafood, Gloucester, MA, was looking to expand its line of extruded seafood products to fill customer needs. Quality Control Director Kathy Scanlon looked to Kerry Ingredients, Beloit WI, to help come up with some ideas.
The result: five new products expected to debut in the beginning of 1999. The impetus, says Scanlon, was the need to use existing equipment in a novel way. In the new lineup are seafood items in the shape of rings, nuggets, fish and three-dimensional triangles. An extruded calamari ring also is in the offing. The Kerry cold-extrusion process is key to the products' success. Designed to be three-dimensional shapes in appetizer weights, these product take advantage of fish trimmings and flakes, allowing the formulator to dictate the end result.
"We formulate a product from the inside out, not from the outside in," says Jeff Kirn, director of sales, Kerry Ingredients. This process allows the formulator to decide the consistency, flavor and mouthfeel parameters, and build them into the product from the ground up. For example, National Fish & Seafood uses a shelf-stable, flavored particulate to add flavor and color to their fish-shaped product. The honey-flavored bits maintain their integrity during processing. The pieces are available in fruit, cheese, meat and sweet variations, and can be customized to meet specific requirements. "It's just a hint of honey flavor," Scanlon says, "but it's just enough that we think kids will go for it." The honey KerryBIT also has been effectively used in honey-mustard chicken nuggets.
The calamari ring developed by the National Fish & Seafood/Kerry Ingredients collaboration takes advantage of the extrusion process to control product texture. Calamari is often tough, and fosters customer complaints, Kirn says. By controlling the formulation and the extruding process, they were able to regulate the extent of "bite," making a consistently textured product. A sodium alginate/calcium chloride system forms an invisible edible skin on the product, holding it together. The product is then par-fried to set the alginate/chloride skin, and packaged for retail or foodservice sale.
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Consumer demand for quick and tasty value-added meat products often goes head-to-head with a desire to eliminate perceived harmful food additives. A segment of the population is wary of added phosphates, alginates, erythorbates or salts. Yet, these consumers also desire the taste and convenience of deli meats and luncheon loaves.
New technology has been developed to give these consumers just what they want. Visionary Design, Inc., Atglen, PA, recently introduced the Slinder process, a unique process that effectively slices meat to provide the substrate for the protein-bonding process.
"The process transforms underutilized, undesirable cuts of meat into slices of meat that can be immersed in hot sauces or gravies for cooked value-added products," says Slinder process inventor Eugene Gagliardi, president and CEO, Visionary Design.
The Slinder slices (rather than grinds) meat, using a patented system that utilizes parallel slits rather than the holes used in the traditional grinding process. The result: More of the meat surface area is exposed and a greater level of myosin is extracted without destroying meat fiber. These long meat strips are then mechanically mixed and the meat fibers interlock and grab one another to create the RiteBite™ process. "When the mixture is formed and fully cooked, it produces a superior restructured product with the texture, bite and appearance comparable to that of a whole-muscle product," Gagliardi says. The process can even blend denuded cartilage into the mixture with no adverse effects on finished-product quality. Gagliardi claims the process can be used on any type of meat, poultry or seafood product.
This technology currently is being used to transform surf clams - typically a tough, inedible mollusk - into a tender clam steak similar to another Gagliardi invention, the Steak-umm product, owned by the Ore-Ida division of H.J. Heinz, Inc. Gagliardi also is responsible for developing KFC's Popcorn Chicken, another value-added product using restructured-meat technology.
The future for restructured meat, poultry and seafood products looks bright as technologists continue developing ingredients, technologies and processes that take advantage of the microstructure of the protein complex. More sophisticated items will appeal to the growing demand for convenience, flavor and texture in ready-to-serve products. Kenniston looks for new technology to make it possible to bind extra meat onto a rack of ribs, making exceptionally meaty ribs that maintain a lean and flavorful character. "Utilization of lower-end meat pieces looks very positive," he says, as technologists continue finding ways to produce more with less. The benefits of cost savings with the improved food safety of these restructured meat products will be a strong incentive for producers to keep up the research.
Ann Juttelstad is a free-lance writer with an associate's degree in food technology and a master's degree in media communications. She has worked for 15 years in quality assurance, product development, technical services, and sales and marketing in the food industry.
• Photo: PMP Fermentation Products
• Photo: Cerestar
• Photo: Farmland Foods
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