Influence of wet extrudates from pumpkin seed proteins on drying, texture, and appearance of dry-cured hybrid sausages

Sandra Ebert,Florence Jungblut,Kurt Herrmann,Monika Gibis,Jochen Weiss,Barbara Maier,Nino Terjung

doi:10.1007/s00217-022-03974-4

Abstract

Hybrid meat products represent a promising, more sustainable alternative to all-meat formulations. However, differences among plant- and animal-based proteins may alter traditional handling and final product properties. In this study, pork meat was partially replaced with texturized pumpkin seed proteins at 12.5, 25, 37.5, and 50% to obtain dry-cured hybrid meat sausages and their ripening (acidification, drying) during 21 days and final product properties (texture, sensory) were characterized and compared to a control (all-meat formulation). The drying behavior and distribution of moisture and free water of hybrids with extrudate contents of 12.5 and 25% were comparable to the sample made with meat and no significant (p > 0.05) differences in proximate composition were found. In contrast, higher meat replacement levels resulted in distinct changes of compositional and textural attributes i.e. chewiness was decreasing by up to 70%. Results suggested 25% of extrudates as an important threshold in manufacture of hybrid dry-cured sausages due to alterations in their ability to bind or release water. Results may be used to understand the influence of alternative texturized proteins in hybrid formulations and help product developers to understand related process and product relevant changes.

Highlights

This study investigates the influence of wet extrudates from unroasted pumpkin seed flour on the ripening behavior and textural and organoleptic properties of the dry-cured
It is generally divided into two steps (1) acidification of raw meat batters at high relative humidity and (2) drying at decreasing relative humidity until the desired weight loss/ moisture level is reached
Results pertaining to the chemical acidification with GDL (0–120 h) of drycured hybrid sausages and a control formulation are discussed first, followed by an evaluation of the drying behavior and moisture distribution during 21 days of ripening

Summary

Introduction

The demand for meat has increased over the last decades, primarily due to an increase of the world population [International Food Policy Research Institute, [1]. Livestock production is one of the major drivers of greenhouse gas emissions and affects availability of land and water [2]. This together with health-related concerns with regards to consumption of meat and meat products [3] underlines the need to find alternative, consumer acceptable solutions to reduce meat consumption. Four hybrid and a control (all-meat) drycured product were manufactured by chemical acidification with Glucono-delta-lactone (GDL) and subsequent drying. Findings were aimed at enhancing the understanding of functionality of texturized plant proteins in hybrid matrices to provide guidance on the development of manufacturing protocols that balance degree of acidification and drying to yield products with high consumer acceptance and long shelf life

Methods

Results

Conclusion